The Unknown
by Ella Unlimited
Summary: "Sometimes Henry," I whispered, putting a hand softly on his cheek, "It's not the unknown that scares us, it's what we know that frightens us the most." HenryxOC Jaggie
1. My Life Changes In a Flash

Prologue:

"Sissy, can we play Candy-land?" Elaine begged, tugging on my shirt. I smiled and ruffled her light blonde hair.

"Sure, can you run inside the tent and grab it for me? I need to finish this letter," I asked, kissing the top of her head. Her small face erupted into a smile, her brown eyes sparkling with happiness.

"Thank you sissy!" She cried, hugging me. I laughed and hugged her back. "I love you!" And with that she ran towards the canvas tent that my parents set up earlier that night. I smiled and shook my head, returning to the letter.

_Henry,_

_Its been over 5 years since we last saw each other. And that just doesn't seem right… We used to be best friends… more than best friends, we agreed, before our families separated. So much has happened since we last talked. I have a little sister, Elaine. You'd love her, she's absolutely adorable. My parents are still enjoying their line of work… even though it's been over 20 years! And from the letters your parents have been sending us, it sounds like you're getting in enough trouble, even without my help._

_But there is something I want to tell you, even after all these years. It's that I've always—_

I stopped writing and listened closely. Something was filling the silent air of the desert. It sounded oddly familiar… but from where?

** "Henry, Audria, please be careful! Be back in exactly 20 minutes!"**

** "Yeah mom, don't worry!" Henry yelled, taking a torch that lined the campsite we were currently living at. "Come on Audio!" I sighed, letting him take my small hand in his own, leading me out into the uncharted forest.**

** "Please don't call me Audio, Henry!" I laughed, ducking under a leaf around the size of me.**

** "Fine… but I'm still going to call you Audio, Audio," I smiled silently to myself, and then I tripped over a root.**

** "I'm fine, Henry, thanks for asking," I muttered, taking his offered hand. I looked around, and then I noticed Henry's other hand was free.**

** "Henry, where's the torch?" I asked, panic rising. The air filled with a strange crackling sound filling the air. We'd heard it earlier today, when Ming Li had shown us the explosive substance.**

** "Black Powder," I whispered, my eyes got wide.**

** "Black Powder!" Henry yelled, grabbing me around the waist and pushing me into the forest, onto the ground, he immediately followed, landing on top of me.**

** There was an explosion, a loud one, and a violent flash of heat. I screamed and started crying, Henry was trembling violently. **

** Then, just as soon as it happened, it ended. My leg hurt, it felt like it was on fire. I continued screaming.**

** "Henry! My leg, put it out!" I cried, beginning to shake with pain. "Henry, make it stop!" I screamed. Then I blacked out.**

** After three days in the hospital, my leg was heavily bandaged, but I was released. I was told that I would have a scar on my leg for the rest of my life. All because of Black Powder.**

"Black Powder," I whispered, dropping my pen and running towards the tent.

"Sissy, what's wrong?" Elaine asked, clutching Candy-land. I quickly scooped her up and left the tent, but as soon as I turned around… the tent exploded.

With my parents inside it.

_Author's Note: Hi, this is obviously my first Unnatural History fanfic. I do not own Unnatural History, or else things may have turned out differently on a few episodes... I don't know why there was Black Powder randomly in the middle of a forest, maybe some accident involving it? But it made for a good prologue in my opinion. I would love a Beta if anyone is interested, but I don't NEED one desperately. Sorry the trio is not introduced into this chapter, but you'll meet someone next chapter... _

_Oh, and in case you're wondering, I was actually inspired by The Brave and the Loyal by Kaleidoscope of Colors, I'm doing my best to make sure our stories are highly different, but other than the fact that Henry already knows Audria, there should be no other similarities in our stories. _

_____Anyway, reviews are always greatly appreciated!_

_____~Ella Out_


	2. New School, New Questions, Old Memories

Chapter One:

"Come on Elaine," I whispered, placing her on my hip, grabbing the green duffel bag from the luggage line. It held everything we owned.

"But I don't want to go!" She cried, burrowing her face in my caramel-colored hair. I felt her tears soak my thin, white t-shirt.

"Come on now, it's just another adventure for us. Do you remember when we were in Alexandria? And how you didn't want to explore the pyramids? And you ended up loving it?" I asked, walking out of the airport and waving down a taxi. One pulled up in front of us, and the driver helped me out with Elaine.  
Elaine just sniffled silently. I kissed the top of her head, whispering to her, "It's going to be okay sweetie, don't worry. I won't let anything happen to you while we're here. I promise."

She looked up at me with her eyes—eyes that broke my heart. They were my mother's brown eyes, the mother that had taken care of me and my little sister as we traveled around the world. The mother who, because of some mysterious explosion, I would never see again.  
I squeezed my eyes shut and breathed through my nose, trying to forget the pain I felt. I need to be strong. If not for me, then for Elaine; I owed her at least that much.

Soon, the rocking motion of the car ride and the soft classical music (thank god this guy didn't like reggae) that was playing lulled my little Elaine to sleep. She had barely gotten any rest on the long plane ride; she was too busy fidgeting and asking questions.  
It still hurt, even after two weeks. It hurt more than it should, I thought. I still had nightmares of what happened, each one starting with the letter to Henry, and always ending right when it was too late, right when I saw, felt, and heard the explosion. At that moment was when I would always remember that I had saved myself and my sister, but not mom and dad. I hadn't gotten to them in time to save them. That was when I always woke up. Every time I woke up from this horrible nightmare that plagued me repeatedly, causing me to shout out or break out in sweat, I always came back to the same question, "what if I hadn't saved Elaine?" Yet, no matter how many times I asked myself that, I was too scared to answer. Elaine kept me going; she was my shining light, the thing that kept me from drowning, from going under to a place of no return.

The taxi pulled up to an old Colonial style house that our parents had owned. After the funeral it was found that Elaine and I had inherited it from our parents. It was white, with a yellow trim. In the front yard was an Oak tree with a tire swing attached to one of the lowermost branches. I faintly remembered the house as a child, fleeting scraps of feelings of happiness and the occasional snippet of a memory, but nothing much.

The driver carried in the duffel bag for me and gave the directions to the nearest Wal-Mart. I quickly paid him and he left, thanking me. Elaine was still asleep, even though it was four in the afternoon. I figured I'd let her sleep some more so she would feel a lot better when she woke up. Skipping the kitchen, dining room, and living room, I went straight up to what was to be the bedroom.

The walls were painted light lavender. There was white furniture in the room, and pictures of my parents and baby me on the walls. Most of them were black and white. I smiled and gently placed her on the white sheets. I'd called ahead and had the cleaning crew change the sheets and do basic repairs to the house so I wouldn't have to worry about them when we arrived.

All in all, it was a beautiful home, and it was a bonus that there was a cleaning crew. Now, I wouldn't have to clean the bathrooms, or mow the lawn, or do the shopping. They'd even gone out and bought us some new clothes, so we wouldn't have to. I turned on the hall light and walked into my new room, which had been previously used as a spare bedroom

My new room was turquoise, with a canopy bed and light wood furniture. There was a desk, a bookshelf, a vanity, and my bed. The bedspread was white with black designs and some little turquoise flowers here and there. I had my own bathroom, (thank goodness) colored black and white. I laid out a hairbrush, a toothbrush, and toothpaste. I quickly put away what little clothes I had left and went to Elaine's room to do the same.  
I didn't dare to go into my parent's old bedroom; what happened was still fresh in my mind, and it just didn't seem right. That was the one room that I had asked to remain locked.

~...~...~...~...~...~

"There! That's the last one," I muttered to myself triumphantly as I placed a purple top in the dresser in Elaine's room. I looked at the bottom of the duffel bag, and noticed in one of the pockets, was a package wrapped in brown paper. "What's this?" I whispered. I looked around to see if anyone else was there, other than the still-sleeping Elaine, and picked it up.

It was heavy, much heavier than I expected. I opened it up, and inside was a necklace. It was the prettiest necklace I had ever laid eyes on! It was pure gold, with a large disk at the end of the chain. In the center of the disk was a large sapphire, the largest I'd ever seen. It looked Greek, due to the writing on the back, but I didn't remember ever seeing this. With a start, I remembered how a few summers back while we were in Greece, my parents had accidentally found a temple dedicated to Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty. They must've found this among the ruins, and taken it with them for further examination. I wondered why they had never donated it or given it back to the archaeological group they were working with. I shrugged it off and knew it was just my parents being my parents. They had probably been waiting for the right museum to donate it to.

The thought brought back the pain; just thinking about them still brought back memories. I squeezed my eyes shut and breathed, concentrating on something, anything else, to get my mind off them. Eventually, the thoughts passed; I continued to breathe though.

In,

Out.

In,

Out.

In,

Out.

I continued in a rhythmic pattern until I was sure I was going to be ok.

I looked down at the necklace and headed to my own room, setting it on my vanity. I pulled on an old tank-top and some sweats, heading downstairs to fix myself some dinner.

Somehow I knew it was going to be a long day tomorrow.

After getting a mere 3 hours of sleep (Elaine had nightmares) I got my lazy butt up and ready for school. Thankfully, the school had accepted my paperwork on such short notice, especially because the school year had already begun. I quickly got dressed in some comfortable yet cute clothes (black shirt, a mini skirt, and pink flats), dressed Elaine as well (cute little white dress with shorts underneath and sandals), and headed downstairs. I cooked some breakfast, grabbed my backpack, and we were gone.

Once I had dropped Elaine off at her new daycare (after being swarmed by mother's who wanted to know which one was mine, who was the father, etc.), I quickly drove to school in my family's old Jeep that had been hiding in the garage.

I quickly got my schedule from the nice woman up front;she offered to walk me to my first class, but I declined. How in the world was I supposed to depend on other people, when my mission was to survive, to try and be ignored?

As I walked through the halls, trying to avoid the rushing students trying to get to their classes, I could feel people's eyes on me. It seems whenever one feels the most vulnerable, that is when the most eyes are upon you; I chalk it up to New Girl Syndrome. I quickly and quietly walked to my geography class. Sitting in an empty seat in the back if the classroom, I tried to avoid everyone's eyes.

As students filed in the teacher called "Come in, come in." when everyone was accounted for, the teacher spoke, "Class, I want you to welcome our newest student, Miss. Audria Carter. Can you please come forward?" The teacher motioned to me; I sighed and stood up, ignoring the stares I received, and the stray wolf whistle some boy felt the need to do.

"Hi, I'm Audria. I'm going to be here for the next two weeks until my little sister and I fly out to Greece to meet with some family friends." I said, trying to seem boring and uneventful.

"Where are your parents?" A black haired boy ask. I sighed and bit my lip, trying to resist the urge to begin crying.

"My parents are currently... away." I finished, my voice tight. Picking at a stray thread on my shirt, I looked away; the look in my eyes kept the boy from asking any more questions.

"Where did you live before here?" A girl asked. I smiled, glad to be on such a comfortable topic for me.

"Well, I just came back from the Savannah in Africa. But I've been all over the world..." and with that, I told a part of my life story.

Soon, the class was over, but the questions never ceased. I was almost sad at the thought I'd only be here for 2 weeks. But at the same time, the thought also made me happy.

I made my way to my next class, Ancient History. And I went through the same process as Geography, with pretty much the routine questions; except, one person asked strange, not your run-of-the-mill new girl kind of questions.

"What did you think of the rapids in southern Peru?"

"I personally loved them, though they're nothing compared to the rapids on the Nile."

"What did you think of the Amazon Rain forest?"

"It was breathtaking, though I thought the Cherry Blossoms in Hiroshima were absolutely beautiful during the springtime."

"What happened to your leg?" Was his last question. I looked down and mentally slapped myself for wearing a mini skirt and ballet flats. Idiot.  
I blushed and bit my lip. On my left leg was a scar from an explosion. It wasn't pretty;it looked as if there was a thick, dark pink ribbon wrapped around my leg. The edges were puckered, almost blood red in color. It was the reason I usually only wore jeans or leggings. Unfortunately, they were out of both in my size at Wal-Mart.

I sighed "I was in an explosion when I was 9, my friend pushed me out of the way, but my leg was caught in the fire. And I was thrashing around, unsure of what was exactly going on, which led to the... strange scar." 32 pairs of eyes were trained on me, most of them wide with shock.

I forced a smile despite the stares, "The doctors said I'd have it for the rest of my life... But you get used to the questions after awhile."

After a small, slightly awkward silence, the teacher broke it, saying, "well, since there's only 5 minutes left in class, I have an idea. Why don't you pair up with someone, choose a subject Audria discussed today, whether it be in this class, or any other, research it and write an essay on it. The paper will be due tomorrow."

Suddenly I was surrounded by people, boys asking for my number and girls wanting to save me a seat at lunch.

"I already had a partner for Miss. Audria, class." At his words, the class groaned and went back to their seats, dejected, well, all except one: the boy who had asked me the strange questions; he had never even stood up or left his seat. "Henry Griffin, you will be Audria's partner." Everyone groaned again, and proceeded to search for a different partner. I smiled tightly at the teacher and went to my seat. Before I sat down, though, I caught his muttered words,

"Good thing too, they've basically lived the same life..." I thought about that for a moment. How could me and this Henry boy have lived the same life?

"Hi, I'm Henry, I'm your partner for this project." The blonde haired boy said, sticking out his hand. I smiled and shook it.

"Audria, where would like to meet?" I asked, beginning to doodle in my notebook.

"How about the library?" he suggested, I shook my head.

"I can't, I don't know where anything is." Henry nodded.

"How about my cousin's house? I'm staying with him while my parents are abroad. Here's the address; you can come right after school, if you want. Oh, and don't worry, we'll feed you." I smiled, and took the scrap of paper he offered.

"Does 5:30 work instead? You don't have to feed us, but I warn you, I'll have to bring my little sister," I smiled sheepishly, writing down my cell-phone number and giving it to him. "I'll bring coffee."

"Then it's a date," He laughed as the bell rang. I blushed and looked down at the slip of paper. His writing was familiar, but from where, I had no idea.

Henry...why does that name sound so familiar?

I thought about it for a moment, and then it came to me: Henry Griffin.

The accident.

The letter.

I was meeting his parents in Greece in a few weeks.

Henry Griffin:

the boy I almost loved.

_A/N: Hey there all my lovely readers! Thanks to every single one of you that either reviewed, favorited, or story-alerted this piece of fiction. Every single one touched my heart (hahaha okay... that was SO sappy!)_

_Anyway, I am no longer looking for a beta. Someone has answered the call and exceded my expectations. She made this chapter AT LEAST 10x better than it was, so thank you to InkShaper, my angel sent from heaven to make my stories better than I could have ever thought! Thank you so much!_

___Well... thank you for taking time to read this chapter... tell me what you think, how you liked it, what I could do to make it better, ect._

___Reviews are ALWAYS appreciated!_

_~Ella Out_


	3. Here Comes the Sun

Chapter Two:

I rang the doorbell; Elaine on my hip, backpack on shoulder, coffee in hand. I must have been a sight because when Henry answered the door, he just stared at me.

"Hi, I'm Audria...from your class? Remember? Sorry I'm a little late, Elaine didn't want to leave daycare," I explained; she just giggled and covered her face shyly. I smiled and tickled her stomach. She laughed louder and more animated, almost spilling the coffee in my failing grasp.

"Here, let me take that," Henry offered, taking both cups so I could deal with the overexcited toddler. I smiled, thanking him, walking and walked inside. It was nice, a run-of-the-mill suburban house. Nothing really special, but something about it, just made me want to never leave.

"You have a beautiful home; where are your parents?" I asked, finally setting Elaine down. Her little hands went immediately to my backpack, which held her select favorite toys and whatnot.

"They're currently in Australia, studying some archaeological dig," he answered. I nodded, pushing my bangs out of my eyes (a battle was ensuing between me and my bangs—and my bangs were winning).

"That's nice! Australia must be beautiful this time of year." I commented. It must have been, seeing as it was nearly wintertime here. I discovered this not long after I stepped outside today and found my arms covered in goose bumps.

"Yeah, they say it is, but they're going to be flying out to Greece in a few days," I nodded, rummaging around my purse for a pencil.

"Greece is supposed to be lovely, or so I've heard. I hope they have a lot of fun," I began to doodle. He just nodded, thoughtful.

"So, what would you like to write about?" He asked. I shrugged, paying more attention to the little stick people I was drawing parading around the page.

"You choose."

"Well... since we've both been to Egypt, why don't we write about their culture?" I smiled and agreed. Egypt was one of my favorite places we got to live in.

"I loved Egypt; it was never cold. And the pyramids were phenomenal," I quickly grabbed my binder out of my backpack, flipping through the pages, trying to find a sheet of paper not covered in Elaine's scribbles or my stick people doodles.

"I thought it was interesting how modern Egypt is a cultural mix between the Ancient Egyptians and their descendants with what was brought by invaders over the centuries," Henry offered. I smile; I knew exactly what he meant.

"It was interesting to see ceremonies that had been done for thousands of years, right alongside those that, comparatively, have only been going on for a few hundred years," And so we wrote, and wrote, and wrote our paper until Elaine complained she was getting hungry.

"I'm sorry, she had some noodles before we came, but she's just always hungry!" I laughed, Henry smiling with me.

"It's fine, besides, I'm getting hungry too; how about we take a snack break? We're almost done with the paper anyway, so I think it would be fine," Elaine squealed and ran inside the kitchen, her little face filled with excitement. When Henry looked my way, I just shrugged, and we quickly followed her.

"Henry, who's is this little girl?" A voice demanded, Henry looked at me, almost happily.

"It's fine, Jasper! It's just my partner's little sister. She's completely harmless, but don't let her near you if she's excited and you are holding a hot liquid," Henry laughed. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something shiny in the other room and went over to look at it.

Was that a pure jade statue of Bastet?

"Henry, did you see that hot girl today at school? I mean, sure Maggie's really cute, but she's like, I don't even know! You should see what's in the guy's bathroom about her..." I narrowed my eyes and decided that was the time to go back to the other room.

"Hey Henry, sorry about running away like that, I thought I saw something... Oh, there you are Elaine! What has gotten into you?" I laughed, I saw a teenager holding her. He was nice looking, shaggy brown hair, and brown eyes to match. In his hands was an instrument case, so I figured that he was part of the band. I smiled sweetly, sticking out my hand.

"Hi! Nice to meet you, I'm Audria Carter, the new girl at school; but, it seems you already know that." I introduced myself, smiling at him, waiting for his reaction.

"Uhh…I'm J-Jasper, I-I'm Henry's cousin, listen what I said earlier... it was just what the other guys were saying at school today, not me, but not that I'm saying I don't think you're pretty, because you are, it's just…um…well…" He just stopped.

"It's fine; I would like my little sister back now, please." Jasper nodded and handed me Elaine, I tickled her stomach and she erupted into laughter. Putting her down, she went directly to Henry.

"I'm hungry," She complained, pointing to her tummy. Henry smiled and stuck out his hand.

"Well what do you want?" He asked, she took his hand and he led her to a pantry in the kitchen.

"DIM SUM!" She emphatically cried out, Jasper looking at me with confusion on his face.

"Dim Sum is one of her favorite things to eat, next to Calamari. She's been absolutely crazy about it ever since we moved back from China," I explained to a very confused Jasper. Shaking my head, I continued, "It is impossible you have Dim Sum in your pantry though, no one makes it outside of China…" Jasper just shrugged, setting down his instrument case.

"Who knows what Henry has in our pantry, ever since he moved in… well… you can say the cuisine of this house has never been the same." I laughed and nodded.

"I've only been here for a few hours, and I can already tell he is quite an interesting person," Jasper nodded, running his fingers through his hair.

"Well, what do you know," he muttered, I looked at the direction he was, and my eyes widened. In Henry's hand, was instant Dim Sum! Elaine was on his back, a proud look on her face.

"I found it!" She cried triumphantly, her small arms wrapped around Henry's neck; he just laughed and shrugged.

"Why do you have Dim Sum in our closet?" Jasper asked, by the tone of his voice, I could somehow tell that finding strange things in the pantry was not an unusual event, "You know what? I don't think I want to know."

Henry shrugged again while he put the dumplings onto a plate. "I might've bought some in Tokyo and just forgot about it," My eyes were trained on Henry, wide with disbelief.

"You actually had Dim Sum in your closet," I sputtered, Henry just smiled and put the food in the microwave.

"It's not a closet, it's a pantry." He corrected, setting Elaine down on the counter.

"Oh whatever, you know what I meant! But seriously, I have never met anyone with Dim Sum in their closet-pantry-thing. Henry Griffin, you are, by far, THE most interesting, strangest person I have ever had the pleasure to meet," Henry smiled and bowed.

"Why thank you, Miss. Carter," I blinked and hastily gave him a hug.

"Thank you, Henry. You've made Elaine happier than she has been in a while," I whispered. Henry looked at me for a moment.

"Now why would that be?" I smiled and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Because you gave her something I couldn't: Dim Sum." Henry laughed.

"My pleasure! Jasper, would you like to join us for a delicious dinner of Dim Sum?"

"No thanks, I have put off my math homework for way to long, enjoy your...uh...Instant Dim Sum." I laughed and set the table for three. Jasper ran upstairs, without his backpack I noticed. Hmm, must be going to talk to this Maggie-girl.

Must, investigate, later!

The three of us sat down, and Henry dished out the late-night meal onto each

of our plates. Elaine scarfed hers down, faster than I would have thought physically possible for a manic two-year old.

I couldn't help myself but stare at Henry while he was occupied eating his

food. It has been at least 6 years since I last saw him, and I'll just say one thing... He was no longer the slightly scrawny boy I had a crush on.

He.

Was.

HOT.

I wouldn't have recognized him if it wasn't for the familiar handwriting. And his eyes, they were just as stunningly green as I remember. Apart from that, his features were different, unfamiliar. Though I am sure the same could be said about me. I had grown up a lot since we last saw each other; six years changes a person. I had Elaine to take care of now.

"Hey, Audria? You okay?" I snapped back and nodded my head.

"Sorry, I'm just really tired." I muttered, popping a dumpling into my mouth.

Yumm.

"You know, I think I know you from somewhere... But I can't put my finger on it," Henry admitted after a moment of silence, chin resting on his propped up fist. I blushed and tucked some loose hair behind my ear.

"Well actually..." But before I could say any more, I was cut off by Elaine.

"Let me out!" Elaine cried, pounding her little fists on the table. I sighed and stood up, taking our plates into the kitchen. Here we go again.

"LET ME OUT!" Elaine screamed, knocking over her cup full of water. "LET ME OUT!" I calmly walked back into the room and lifted her out of the chair. She didn't have anything holding her down, she just enjoyed being lifted up.

"Elaine, calm down. You're out, see?" She just continued to freak out, limbs flailing I sighed. Was she really going to make me do it?

"Elaine Allison Carter, calm down this instant." I said in a stern voice.

"NO!" She cried, pulling my hair. I yelled and pulled her hands out of my hair; I'm pretty sure she came away with a couple strands. Darn you, Possessed overactive two-year-old

"Here comes the sun, doo-da-doo-doo, here comes the sun, and I say," I sang softly.

"It's alright," Elaine murmured. I smiled and kissed her forehead. She giggled and smiled back.

"Why are you singing that song?" Henry asked, an urgent note to his voice.

"Its just something I do, it calms Elaine down." I muttered. In reality, it was something me and Henry had done with each other when we were little kids.

** "Henry, come on!" I cried, dragging my best friend up the hill. It was almost 5:30 in the morning, but we had woken up over an hour ago, and Henry wasn't happy about it. **

** "I just want to go back to bed, Audio!" He whined, tugging at my arm. I looked back at him and growled as fiercely as an eight-year old girl could. **

** "I am NOT going to sleep with all those people around me. And I need SOMEONE to play with besides that creepy worker's kid." Henry growled right back at me. I scowled and sat down on a rock nearby. A moment later, he joined me.**

** "Look! Here comes the sun!" I cried, pointing towards the light. Henry squinted and looked up at the sky. **

** "Yup," He said in a bored tone. I groaned. **

** "Henry, you're...unbearable." I said, using one of the new words I heard my dad use that week. Henry looked at with a confused expression. **

** "Unbearable?" I shrugged. **

** "I guess it means you're acting like a bear," I offered. After a moment we both burst out in laughter. I sighed and laid back down on the rock. **

** "Here comes the sun, doo-da-doo-doo, here comes the sun, and I say, it's alright!" I sang happily.**

** "Little darling, it's been a long, cold, lonely winter. Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here." Henry sang along with me. We looked at each other and burst out laughing.**

** From then on, whenever Henry or I was in a bad mood, the other would sing Here Comes the Sun, and we would both burst out laughing, our bad mood cured.**

** Over the years, I had started to do it with Elaine. Whenever she had a fit, we**

**would both sing the Beatles song.**

"Oh, wait... I swear you look, really familiar. It's on the tip of my tongue," I laughed and hiked Elaine up higher on my hip.

"I'm sure you'll get it eventually," I teased, knowing it was killing not to know.

"Give me a hint, please." He begged, I smiled and sat Elaine down on the couch.

"Alright, I'll give you a hint. You used to have a nickname that I absolutely hated." He looked at me for a moment longer, before realization hit his face.

"Audio?" I smiled.

"Yup!" I laughed. He stared, a smile slowly spreading across his face.

"Audio! I can't believe it's you!" He hugged me, and spun me around. I laughed and buried my face in his neck.

"Where have you been all this time?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," I whispered. He smiled and squeezed me tighter.

"Try me." He whispered.

_A/N: Hello! Thank you to all of those who reviewed/favorited/alerted my story! Hope you enjoyed this chapter, cause I enjoyed making it! Sorry for the long wait, homework, evil teachers, and grouchy mom's prevented me from getting this out to you sooner._

_ Thank you once again to InkShaper, my lovely beta! Give her a round of applause! _

_ Anyway, thank you to all of you who have read this story, once again. And I'll get the next chapter out ASAP! _

_ As always, reviews are appreciated._

_~Ella Out_


	4. Mamma Mia!

Chapter 3:

"Henry! I can't believe you actually found those Viking gods on Roanoke, why did you let Sven Erickson take credit for their discovery?" Henry simply shrugged.

"He was the one who had all the information... he just wasn't able to carry his plans out like expected," I looked at him in amazement.

"That is amazingly selfless, Henry. I don't think I could have done that..." I muttered, him shrugging and taking a sip of his drink.

"It was nothing, he really deserved it, I just... helped his progress along is all. I couldn't take credit-"

I cut him off, "Henry, that would've impressed your parents beyond imagination. You could've become even more famous than both my parents combined!"

He looked to the floor; it seems I had hit a nerve. Henry was always living in his parents' shadow. He's always trying to outdo them, but no matter what he does, he seems to always falls short of people's expectations…no one could relate to him better than me.

"I know... but it would've been wrong, Sven's son needed something to remember his father by, something to make his father proud," I bit my lip and tentatively patted the back of his hand.

"Henry, that was so kind of you. Giving that boy something to take pride in, something that he did that gave him something to remember his father by... that's the thing that people should be talking about all over the world," Henry looked at me and smiled. I smiled back and squeezed his hand.

"Henry!"

From across the room, we heard a sound akin to that of a pig's squeal, causing us to jump a bit in our seats. Turning around, I saw an Asian girl, with shoulder length black hair and small yellow highlights running right at us. She was pretty, but her shirt was cut just low enough that her chi-chi's were hanging out a bit...never mind... make that a lot…

"Hi Misoka," Henry greeted lamely. I awkwardly smiled and stuck out my hand.

"Hi, I'm Audria, I'm going to Henry's school for a few weeks..." But I fell short when I saw the look her face.

"That's nice; this is my step-brother, Vick." She introduced. He was a nice-looking boy, black hair that framed his black eyes.

"It's nice to meet you," I smiled, and shook his hand. I probably would have tried to flirt with him, except was staring at me funny, as if I were prey, and he a very, very hungry predator. I looked away and instantly regretted wearing my tight-fitting long-sleeved shirt.

"Henry, what a coincidence seeing you here! What are the odds?" She chirped. I could already tell this girl was going to be very annoying...

"Audria, I've got to go to the bathroom, you want me to pick something up at the front for you?" Henry asked while he stood up, brushing off the crumbs of a cookie he had been munching on earlier.

As soon as I started to tell him what I wanted, Misoka cut me off. "I'll have a nonfat skinny chocolate va-va-voom latte, without the vava, Henry. Thanks for asking," She smiled; I glared at her out of the corner of my eye. I REALLY didn't like this girl…

"I'm good, thanks for asking Henry." I said through my teeth.

"You're welcome, Audria. I'll be right back Misoka," The girl beside me smiled, attempting to show off her "assets" when she sat down. Ick. As soon as Henry was around the corner, Vick just got up and left.

"Okay, then... where'd your brother go?" Misoka shrugged and picked at her nails.

"Hey, Auddie?" I cringed at the nickname but was polite. Kill 'em with kindness, that's what my mom always taught me.

"Yes, Misoka? And it's Audria, not Auddie."

"Henry is mine, you understand? Mine. Every other girl in the school knows it, me and him are an item. So if you start touching my man... You're dead meat. Got it sweetie? There must be a brain somewhere behind that pretty face," I just sat there dumbly for a moment, completely shocked at how coolly she had threatened me.

Ok, not only is she a young version of a hoochie-mama, she's wicked messed up.

"Do. You. Speak. English.?" She asked slowly, waving her hands around in what seemed to be an attempt to "get through to me". I chuckled in my head; she looked like she had just gotten her arms stuck in a windmill. (Lol)

"Yeah..." I answered cautiously, not really knowing where she was going with this.

"Do you understand what I just said?" She asked again slowly.

"Yeah..."

"Good!" She chirped, patting me on my head even though I was a good 4-inches taller. "We'll get along just fine these next few weeks until you're gone!" I just nodded and swallowed the remainder of my water. Oh. Boy.

"Here you go Misoka," Henry said, handing her some coffee. She smiled sweetly and took it from him, sipping it. She smiled.

"Perfect," She purred, batting her eyelashes. She took another sip, leaving a foam mustache on her upper lip. I looked away to prevent myself from laughing... not being quite successful.

"Where's Vick?" He asked; Misoka just shrugged, drinking deeply from the coffee. He turned to me and I shrugged.

"Well, it was nice seeing you, Misoka, and it was nice meeting Vick... wherever he is... But Audria and I better get going." Henry explained, wrapping an arm around my shoulder. I looked away nervously, not really wanting to see Misoka's reaction.

"Oh, are you two going out?" Misoka calmly inquired I could hear the venom behind her "calm" tone... apparently so could Henry.

"No, we're just old family friends, and we haven't seen each other in a REALLY long time, so we're just catching up." Misoka smiled and nodded, her eyes filled with hate, and insanity.

"That's nice, have fun!" She said as we walked out of the cafe.

"So, what did you and Misoka talk about?" Henry asked softly, I looked at him, and once we turned a corner, I started talking.

"She said you guys were... an item? What does that even mean?" I asked quickly. I really needed to catch up on my 21st century teen lingo.

"I think it means that we're going out... But we're not. So I don't know why she said that."

"Oh, okay." I breathed, suddenly relieved. "So where to?"

"There's this really great restaurant that I think you'd like; it's absolutely delicious." I smiled and leaned my head on his shoulder.

"Are you cold?" I nodded, and he wrapped an arm around me.

"Thanks. I haven't been this cold since Greenland," I whispered as soft flakes floated down from the sky. Henry's hand slowly found mine, and we walked hand in hand... Until I realized what was going on.

I lifted my head off his shoulder and slowly pulled my hand from his. I gave him a sad look, and when he finally caught my gaze I slowly shook my head no.

"Sorry, I just thought..." He tried to explain, but I cut him short.

"Henry, I'm only going to be here for 2 weeks; can't we just be friends? I don't think I could take it if I left you again," I whispered, biting my lip and looking down at my boots, careful to avoid his gaze.

"You're right, I'm sorry. I think I can manage being just friends," he smiled, ruffling my hair.

"You know, at one point in time I was taller than you," I said stubbornly. Henry just laughed.

"But you're not anymore... Are you?" I hissed and pushed him. He laughed and pushed me back. We looked at each other and burst into a fit laughter.

"Where is the restaurant?" I asked innocently, pushing my bangs out of my eyes (I was still losing the battle).

"Just around the corner... Why?"

"Cause I'm gonna beat you!" I cried, sprinting down the street. I could hear his laughter echoing behind me as he tried to catch up.

Just like old times, I thought to myself. I giggled as we walked into the restaurant, my cheeks flushed and Henry gasping for air.

We must've been quite a sight, what with both of us covered in snow and spasmodically giggling. I was wearing skinny jeans, my blue long sleeved shirt, a white coat, brown scarf, and a pair of boots. Henry was wearing his worn-out grey sweats, a t-shirt, jacket and a beanie soaked through from the melting snow. We walked into together, laughing and brushing off stray snowflakes.

"Hey Henry! Man, you already got the new girl? Come on, give the rest of us a shot!" i heard a guy joke.

Whoa, what was with all these good looking men in D.C.? Not that I'm really complaining...

I could tell he was an athlete. That much was easy, what with him being slightly tanned with muscles that were bulging under his waiter's jacket.

"You know sweetie, if you ever get tired of Henry, I'm always available." I blushed as he offered to take my coat. I shrugged out of it and looked at him.

"We're just family friends... I'm still not going out with anyone." I said shyly, he smiled and winked.

"Well then, call me."

"I would-if I had a cell phone," I whispered. My face was probably the color of a tomato I was blushing so hard. The guy laughed and lead us to our seats, placing my coat on the back of my chair. He pulled out my chair and handed us our menus. I smiled and thanked him as he left.

I turned to Henry and saw a familiar look on his face.

It was the face he had when he was really pissed.

The face he makes when he wants to kill someone.

"What's wrong Henry?" I asked, setting down my menu. I gently touched

his hand reassuringly.

"I know... But...I just never thought that you would have ever learned how to defend yourself." He joked. I removed my hand and perused the menu options.

"Maggie seems really sweet." I commented after a moment of awkward silence. Henry nodded, his face lighting up.

"She's the best! Jasper really likes her." Henry said, sipping a drink he had ordered. I smiled, thinking about how Maggie had Jasper's name written all over her notebooks.

"I have most of my classes with her, she's absolutely crazy about him. They should really go out on a date sometime," I said, taking a sip of whatever the athlete-guy had gotten me. I forced myself to swallow, but quickly stole Henry's water and tried to get rid of the nasty taste in my mouth.

Henry smiled evilly. "Don't like Coke?" I shook my head and chugged more water.

"Way too syrupy," I eventually replied. Henry laughed, slinging one arm over the back of his seat.

"It takes a while to get used to, but European Coke is much better. I'm sure you'll like it after a while." I shook my head viciously.

"No way, that stuff," I paused while someone walked by, "Gross," I whispered, sticking out my tongue. Henry laughed and took another sip of my Coke. I grimaced as he drank it.

"They like things sweet here," I raised my eyebrows.

"I noticed."

There was sugar everywhere; in little packets on the table, on top of food; there was even an entire page dedicated to dessert!

"So where's your hyperactive, crazy little sister?" I laughed and leaned back in my chair.

"She's at home with the new babysitter, a.k.a., Maggie." Henry smiled and told the waitress what we wanted.

"Extra cheese with sausage, pepperoni, and mushrooms. Traditional style." I looked at him curiously and he just shrugged.

"Wait and see," And so I did. When the food came, I was surprised to find that it was pizza. He still remembered my favorite toppings from when we were kids (insert: "aww!" here). Lucky for us, they hadn't changed.

As we walked out of the restaurant, I was surprised to find the sun already setting. The snow was continuing to fall in a steady pace, making the landscape spread out before us resemble an ethereal demesne, the snow like powdered sugar dusted over all surfaces it could reach.

"I'm glad we did this," I said as we caught a taxi. He put an arm around my shoulder as I leaned my head against him.

"I am too; I can't think of a better way to spend my Saturday," He grinned.

"We should do it again"

"I second that notion."

"We should start talking regularly, too; I missed you." Henry smiled and squeezed my shoulders.

"I missed you too, Audio. Oh, and did it bother you that everyone though we were going out?" I thought about it for a moment, and to my amazement, I didn't mind.

"No, it's just like when people used to confuse us for siblings... It doesn't bother me at all,"

"Oh, okay. Here we are," I looked up an was surprised to find myself looking at my house, Maggie's car still parked out front.

"Thanks for a great day Henry."

As we got out of the taxi, Henry quickly paid him and we walked over to Jasper's Smart Car.

Turning towards me he spoke, "thank YOU for a great day! I hope to see you on Monday,"

After a moment's hesitation, he kissed me on the cheek, and then drove off. My heart began to flutter in my chest, my cheeks were flushed and I felt frozen to the spot. I was so focused on the burning sensation coming from where Henry had kissed me on the cheek that I had forgotten I was still standing outside in the cold, while it was snowing.

I walked inside and paid Maggie. Elaine was already in bed and I wasn't tired. I pretended to watch TV for a while, but his face kept showing up in my mind.

[ ]…[ ]…[ ]…[ ]…[ ]…[ ]

** "Henry!" I yelled, my voice echoing through the woods. Henry had disappeared ****off into the forest, and I wanted to find him soon. Hearing a rustle in the ****trees behind me, I spun around, only to find him two inches from my face. I ****screamed and fell on my butt, only to start laughing so hard I began to cry.**

** "You scared me!" I laughed, getting up with his help.**

** "Sorry. I was just hiding from the parents," I stopped laughing and looked at ****him sadly.**

** "Yeah, I can't believe we're moving away from each other," I whispered. We ****climbed a tree and sat down next to each other on the branches.**

** "We've been together since, well, forever! How can we just not be with each ****other? How can they split us apart like this?" I shrugged, leaning against the ****bark. I was desperately trying to not let the tears threatening to spill over fall.**

** "It's going to be hard waking up and knowing you're not there," I choked, ****tears beginning to fall down my cheeks. "You're my best friend Henry, I'm ****going to miss you like crazy."**

** "I'm going to miss you too, Audio." I groaned and looked at Henry.**

** "I thought I asked to you stop calling me that," He shrugged, unbothered by ****her continuous chastisement of his nickname for her.**

** "Might as well be annoyed with me today than missing me tomorrow," At his words, I shut up.**

** "You're right, sorry." I whispered, sad, "But you are coming over for Christmas, right? We're going to be in Paris!" He smiled and nodded.**

** "Of course I am! I wouldn't miss it for the world!" I smiled and he looked at**

**me seriously.**

** "You won't mention...you know?" I shook my head emphatically.**

** "I'll take it to my grave," I promised. I heard our parents calling our names, ****and the tears started to stream even more down my face. We climbed down from ****our tree and hugged each other.**

** "You're the coolest girl I'll ever know," I smiled and bit my lip.**

** "You're the best friend I'll ever have," We stared at each other for a moment.**

** "I love you, Audria. You're the closest thing I've ever had to a sister, and a ****girlfriend." I blushed. (Again, insert "aww!" here)**

** "I guess I love you too, Henry." He smiled, and my heart simply melted.**

**Then he kissed me. Right on the lips. Before I knew it, he had pulled away.**

** "See you at Christmas, Audio."**

** "Bye Henry," I tried to respond, but he was already gone. He melted into the trees, leaving my lips still tingling and my 11-year old heart broken.**

The realization hit me mid-munch while I was eating Cheerio's at two in the morning.

I was still I love with Henry.

Even after 6 years.

_A/N: AWWWWWW! Anyway, Chi-chi's is Inkshaper's Spanish teacher's way of say boobies in case you were wondering..._

_Lol, anyway... I am SO sorry about the long hold-up. I had my first Colorguard competition last Saturday, and I have started writing my own book (YAYZ!) So that's been taking up a lot of my time._

_Thank you to all of you who reviewed/favorited/alerted my story... you have no idea how much it means to me! So a special thanks to you all, even you silent readers who just pop in and out to update your knowledge of this story... THANKS!_

_Questions, concerns, or comments are always welcomed. _

_Reviews are especially appereciated. _

_~Ella Out!_


	5. Night Terrors

Chapter 4:

As I watched re-runs of I Love Lucy, I slowly came to accept the fact that I was still in love with Henry. No matter how much I wanted to protest it, I couldn't find any reason why I DIDN'T love him... He was perfect.

At one in the morning, the marathon ended, and I managed to trudge to my room and fall asleep on my bed.

Hours later I woke up in a cold sweat, my throat raw from screaming. Thick, salty tears covered my face, my sheets wrapped tightly around my body. My heart was pounding erratically, my chest moving up and down rapidly.

It was just a nightmare, just a bunch of jumbled thoughts brought together by my unconscious mind.

No, scratch that.

It was THE nightmare, I realized.

The nightmare that scared me the most, the one where no one ever lived, where I was all alone, surrounded by darkness, death, and absolute desecrating sorrow. The one where I wanted to die, but I couldn't. I was trapped forever in pain and tortured endlessly, never stopping, no matter how much I begged for the sweet relief of death.

My Buddha, how could I go from being in love to this?

Then I remembered I was an orphan; of course, I would be haunted by dreams of death, it was very normal...

Wasn't it?

I slowly sat up, ignoring my body's protests to leave the warm sheets. I walked into the bathroom and started the shower, turning the water to scalding hot. I looked in the mirror and was startled by what I saw.

I was much thinner than I was a few weeks ago; my hair was limp and listless, barely framing my face anymore. What were more startling were my eyes. The green-blue orbs were lifeless, no light shining through them anymore.

I looked away, not wanting to see the ghost I had become.

The phone started ringing behind me, which startled me out of my reverie me. I quickly walked towards the phone, glancing at my clock.

2:36 AM

Who in their right minds would call that early? Henry's parents maybe... However, they're in rural Australia, thus, no phone service.

I pressed the receiver to my ear. "Hello?"

"You have something that doesn't belong to you," a voice spoke at the other end, "And I want it back," then the phone went dead.

"Hello?" I repeated. I shrugged and put the phone back into its cradle. That's when I heard something coming from my window. I spun around and bent my head back skillfully, barely missing the knife that came hurtling towards my face. I looked towards the window and saw... nothing. It wasn't even open!

I looked behind me at the mirror. The knife had hit the exact middle. In the mirror, my face was broken into thousands of pieces, the cracks forming spider webs across my features.

I pulled the knife from the wood and glass, Greek writing written all over. The knife was obviously handmade, the blade attached to the hilt with mere twine, tightly wound; it was so tight that I knew I had no hope of separating the two.

My brain was jumbled and had yet to register what just happened. I wrote it off as a fluke, blaming my still-bleary imagination. Tossing the knife carelessly onto my bed, I wondering faintly who had thrown it and why.

I quickly stripped and jumped into the now scalding shower trying to clear my tired mind.

When I got out, it was three in the morning. Knowing that I had zero chance of going back to sleep, I simply got dressed. Picking out a dress with jeans to go under it and gladiator sandals, I braided my wet hair and walked downstairs, pouring myself a bowl of Captain Crunch. Yum.

As I munched on the slightly stale cereal, I thought about yesterday. It had been Sunday, and Maggie had come over to help me with my homework (Let's just say, English is NOT my best language...) and after that adventure, we had decided to rent a movie.

In the time it takes to finish Dear John, Maggie had confessed her love about Jasper, I admitted I was still loved Henry even after 6 years, and that I had never being closer to any other girl.

"But it's been, what, 3 days?" Maggie laughed and the credits rolled on the TV screen. I shrugged, stuffing popcorn into my mouth.

"No girl has really ever accepted me, and I usually didn't get the guts to talk until a week before we left the village." Maggie smiled and hugged me tightly.

"Thanks," She whispered into my ear.

I smiled, "I'm only telling the truth," I responded.

I was brought back to reality when I heard Elaine screaming upstairs. I sighed and trudged my butt upstairs, the thought of just letting her have the screaming fit flitted more than once through my head.

I walked into her room, making my way towards her crib, already exhausted at the thought of calming her down. "Elaine, sweetie, its okay. It's over." I whispered soothingly to her, but she continued thrashing.

"Elaine, sweetie, please—"

"MOMMY!" She screamed, interrupting my whispering. "DADDY!" she screamed louder.

"Elaine! Calm down, sweetie. It was just a nightmare," I said, trying to scoop her up. She kicked me away, biting me in the process. "Elaine!" I yelled in shock.

"MOMMY" she screamed. "DADDY!"

I looked around, panicking and wondering why the toddler books I had read didn't explain what to do when you're 2 year old was having nightmares about her dead parents. Oh, the things those authors leave out...so convenient...

So, doing what I normally did in a tough situation I picked up my phone and dialed one of the two numbers I had memorized, Henry's cell phone or the Pizza Delivery service.

I'll let you guess.

"Hello?" He muttered at the other end.

"Henry, do you know how to calm a rampaging two-year old?" I asked quickly, and then saw what Elaine was doing. "Elaine! Put down that lamp!" Her little hands dropped the lamp, the piece of furniture falling to the hardwood.

"Elaine!" I said in my "I'm-not-angry-I-want-to-kill-you" calm voice. No matter what I did, he possessed little creature kept making a racket.

"I'll be there in a second," he sighed. I smiled.

"Thank you so much, Henry. I could just kiss you!" I cried, running down the stairs to unlock the front door.

"Love you too, Audio," The funny thing is, he had no idea how much I wanted him to say that to me for real.

When he arrived, he was pulling on a shirt, and his pants were falling off. I laughed and attempted to fix his dirty-blond hair that was sticking up everywhere.

"You know, it would've been fine if you waited until you were fully dressed," I giggled; he looked at me deadly seriously.

"Thanks for the advice; I just walked down the streets of DC in nothing more than my underwear. Just for you," I burst out laughing, hugging him.

"You are the best, Henry," he grudgingly smiled and hugged me back. I gave him one last squeeze and let go when I heard a crash coming from upstairs.

"Elaine!" I yelled, bolting up the stairs. The little demon had gotten out of her crib (there go the "child-proof" lock bars I had installed) and was just standing there in the middle if the hall, screaming like a banshee. Her eyes were wide open, full of fear. He little hands were struggling against some unknown force, corn silk hair sticking up.

I looked at her in horror when I saw the bleeding cuts on her arms and legs. Henry quickly scooped her up, rocking her back and forth rhythmically.

After a few moments, her eyes slowly shut, then opened again. "Sissy? What happened?" I breathed heavily, the horror of the scene still fresh in my mind.

"Nothing, sweetie. Let's get some band-aids on you before you go back to bed," She nodded sleepily and watched through half-opened eyes as I played doctor.

Once she fell asleep and I was sure that she would be okay, I joined Henry downstairs on the couch.

"What happened to you? It's not like you've never seen blood before," I looked away. It was true: I was no stranger to blood, especially his (one got used

to it after all the escapades we went on).

**"Audio," I heard someone call out. It was dinnertime, and Henry still hadn't come inside, which was quite unusual. I started running towards the sound.**

**"Henry! Where are you?" I yelled; in response, all I heard was a moan. I pushed myself harder; racing Henry and Tomba had finally paid off. **

**The three of us often had races around the schoolyard. At the beginning, I was left in the dust, but now, running was fun. Tomba's dad, Papa Tolo, joked around and called me a gazelle, which lead to my nickname here, Gazzie.**

**"Henry? Where are you?" I screamed. I heard a moan from above me. I looked up, and something hit me on the forehead. I brought my fingers to it cautiously, and I had a mini-heart attack when I saw the color. Red – blood red.**

**I climbed the tree and gagged when I saw him. His shirt was torn: thick red tears oozing blood. I stifled the urge to vomit and gingerly took off the rest of his shirt.**

**"What happened, Henry?" I murmured, applying pressure to his wounds.**

**"Animal… attacked me." He coughed out, trying to sit up, only to be pushed back down.**

**"What were you doing?" I whispered softly in Japanese. Our parents hadn't bothered to learn the language, so whenever Henry or I needed to talk to each other privately, we started speaking it.**

**"I thought I could catch that animal that was terrorizing the village – you know, the one killing all the livestock." He groaned, coughing up blood. I grimaced and put a hand under his head, propping him up slightly. I sighed, annoyed with my best friend.**

**"Henry, you're 9. You can't kill some beast when you don't even know what it is!" I cried, applying a bit more pressure than needed. He winced and shut his eyes, but he was smiling.**

**"Who said I didn't catch it?" He asked, grinning devilishly; I snorted and gently pulled Henry into my lap, tying what was left of his shirt in knots over the wounds.**

**"Was it worth almost dying? Henry, had I not found you, you would've died from blood loss." He snorted.**

**"Yeah, right," he answered cockily. I frowned.**

**"Henry, you're not indestructible; the sooner you get that into your head, the better." It was Henry's turn to frown.**

**"Why are you always such a spoil-sport, Audio?" He moaned as we dropped to the ground.**

**"Maybe because I have to have enough brains for you, me, and Toba." I argued.**

**"Ow! Could you stop dragging me? These rocks hurt!" I glared.**

**"Maybe if I could if you didn't weigh so much," I panted as I dragged him along the ground.**

**"Sorry. If your mom didn't cook such good dinners, maybe I wouldn't!" He**

**grunted. I scoffed and pretended to drop him. He yelled and clutched my pants. I laughed and continued to drag him.**

**"Maybe I should start cooking instead!" I joked; he looked up at me in mock-horror.**

**"We'd all die by the second meal," he whispered dramatically. I looked at him in anger.**

**"It was only that one time, Henry! I can't help it if you eat 10 cookies! It's not my fault you got food poisoning…" I muttered dejectedly. Henry smiled.**

**"Thanks, Audio. I know I may push you around, but it's because you're my only friend," he murmured. I looked at him curiously.**

**"What about Tomba? And that one girl in Australia? And that other guy in Brazil? And those twins in Mongolia? And–" he quickly cut me off .**

**"My only true friend. I know that you'll always be there to drag me away from death… even if you don't like blood." **

**I scoffed.**

**"Bite your tongue, Henry Griffin!" We looked at each other and burst out laughing as we entered the camp, we were soon being swarmed by adults with anti-bacterial wipes and band-aids, a result for laughing out loud.**

**Henry was all right, and he quickly recovered, joining Tomba and me in the schoolyard in just 3 days. Later that month, we moved on to "our next adventure."**

**I realized something very valuable, that day; Henry was right. He really was my only true friend.**

"Audria? Are you okay?" He whispered, pushing back my bangs softly. I nodded.

"I've just never seen her like that before… I mean even after—" I stopped, slapping myself for just about spilling the secret.

"Even after what, Audio? What happened?" Henry asked persistently. I shook my head.

"It's nothing, there was just an accident the last camp we were at, and it spooked Elaine and she hasn't been the same since."

"Night terrors maybe," Henry offered; I looked at him.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you don't remember!" He laughed, I just shook my head, "Well, when we were… say, six, you would wake up in the middle of the night, screaming your head off and running around. No one knew what was wrong with you, 'cause you would just fall to the ground after 30 minutes, until the local shaman concluded it might be night terrors, bad dreams were scaring you so bad that you were physically trying to fight them off. You were treated, and got better," He smiled, putting an arm around my shoulder.

"No, I have absolutely no memory of such events," He just smiled and ruffled my semi-wet hair.

"I have to go to the bathroom, where is it?" He asked, standing up.

"Just go to the one in my room, the first door on your right. Unless you want to go to the one down here and smell like lemon-scented air-freshener all day."

"I'll be upstairs,"

"That's what I thought." I giggled, watching him walk upstairs.

After a few moments, I heard his soft feet pad down the stairs. I turned around to see him clutching a knife in his hands.

Oh, right, I was attacked this morning. Huh, usually I don't forget such things… maybe I just need coffee…

"What is this?" I shrugged.

"I was attacked this morning… I didn't know if it was normal here, but by the look on your face, I'm guessing not."

"Whom were you attacked by?"

"I don't know, air, I guess. No one was there; the knife just flew towards my head," I shrugged. "I've been attacked by worse though, so I'm not too concerned."

"You should be… this is an actual Greek knife used by the foot soldiers in

ancient times. The engravings on here mean 'I want it back…' does that mean anything to you?" I looked at him, shocked.

"Since when do you know Greek?" He shrugged.

"Since I was in Greece… I took it up for fun," I recoiled, my shock apparent on my face.

"Henry Griffin, taking up languages for fun? The apocalypse is upon us! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" I mocked screamed; he just laughed and tested the weight of the weapon.

"You rubbed off on me once we separated. Anyway, it's definitely hand-made; good balance, excellent weapon."

"Thanks... That'll really help me on my Geography quiz today." He shrugged and sat back down next to me.

"You never know. Say, I have an idea! Why don't we just go and check out the new exhibit at Smithsonian; it should be opening today." I looked at him.

"Uh-huh, there just so happens to be an exhibit of Ancient Greek? When is that ever going to happen?" Henry shrugged, twirling the knife in his hands.

"Eh; weird things like that just seem to happen here; you get used to it." I nodded, taking the knife from his hand.

"Alright then, it's a date!" I laughed, using his exact words. He just laughed along with me.

Δ Ω Σ Ψ Δ Ω Σ Ψ

"You really didn't have to stay all morning," I said, hugging my knees as Henry drove towards the school.

"Yeah, I did. And apparently I have to drive you everywhere now because you don't have a license!" My cheeks flushed and I opened my mouth to say something, and just stopped.

"Hey, it's fine, you're a better driver than me, and I have the legal documents," I just shrugged, playing with my necklace (the unofficially inherited one, of course) as the wind whipped violently at my hair, drying it. Henry glanced over at me, and then pulled off to the side of the road.

"What's wrong?" He asked bluntly. I looked at him, slightly shocked he could tell I was upset. Dang, and I thought I was hiding it so well!

"Nothing, I'm just tired," Out of all the things I could say, here I am, using the biggest lie in the world as my excuse. He just laughed. "Audio, listen, you're shaking slightly, your eyes keep darting around nervously, and you're in America. After I came back from visiting America when we were 9, you swore you'd never come back." My brow furrowed as I frantically thought of a way to get out if this.

"Something happened when we were in Africa, and it's left both Elaine and me... concerned, to say the least." I stuttered. Henry nodded understandingly.

"And is there any chance you'd share what that event was?" I looked at him, and my heart stopped. I just couldn't get over how unexplainably...different he was. And yet, he was still the child that I grew up with: reckless, curious, slightly dim-witted (but only slightly, mind you), lovable, spontaneous, trustworthy, adventurous... Overall, everything I wasn't.

"You'll find out soon enough," I whispered. Our eyes met and we looked at each other until, hesitantly, I looked away.

"If you ever need a hand to hold... I'm always here. No matter what." Henry murmured, holding out his hand. He smiled reassuringly, and as I took his hand in mine, I finally realized, as I leaned my head against his shoulder as we drove back onto the highway, I really was falling head-over-heels in love with Henry Griffin.

And there was nothing I could do about it.

_A/N: Okay, Night Terrors is a real condition, I should know. I had it. :)_

_Um... this is a replaced chapter, frankly because I hated the flow. And now I think I know why there has been a strange absense of reviews... maybe?_

_Yes, OMG it is true. Audria loves Henry. Very much so. And eventually, they will become a couple (sorry if you hadn't figured it out yet... but the signs were quite obvious.)_

_Anyway, reviews are always appreciated._

_~Ella Out_


	6. Curiosity

Henry's Point Of View

'This knife was found in the area surrounding a temple dedicated to Ares, the Greek god of war. The engravings on the side roughly translate to 'May the great god Ares protect me during my fight.' Incidentally, this knife was found in a soldier's grave. The knife is handmade—" I read dutifully; as hard as I tried to stay focused, the words just seemed to drift off the platform as I read them.

Honestly, the reason I couldn't read was that I couldn't stop thinking about...

Her.

Audria (obviously); she was so different from when we were just kids playing in a mud puddle. At the same time, she seemed the same. She was never out of my mind; it seemed wherever I went over the years something would remind me of her, causing her face to flash across my sight, a stray thought or two wondering how she was doing right then not far behind. She was... Beautiful: that's the only word that could begin to describe her. Everything about her seemed natural, though her sudden loss of weight and constantly being stressed might suggest otherwise. It seemed like she was carrying the weight on her world, yet somehow, she was still beautiful.

Unfortunately, I wasn't the only guy that noticed. It killed me that boys' eyes followed her slim figure down the halls, or listen to them murmurings about her in the locker room. It made me want to lock her up in a tower like Rapunzel, to keep her safe from all the wandering eyes; that, and punch those guys for talking about her. I knew she'd never accept that. She was just as stubborn, pride-filled and annoyingly cautious as she was the day I left her.

What can I say? I couldn't help but love her.

We'd been here for over an hour, and it seemed like pure luck that nobody had seen us yet. My eyes were beginning to burn and itch from staring at the little letters that covered all of the exhibits. For over an hour we had been trying to find something—anything—that could help us on our search.

"What, pray tell, do you think you are doing here?" A chilling voice asked from behind me. I knew that voice. Mr. Anchovy was what Jasper and Maggie called him... I think.

Ruh-roh. Nicht gut. (*N: English translation is "Not good.")

I was the first to react, "Sorry Mr. Anchevony. I was helping Audria. See, she doesn't really understand Greek Mythology. She's kind of struggling in Ancient History right now, and she learns a lot like me, so I thought it might help to bring her to the exhibit," I lied easily, a natural talent I had thankfully been blessed with. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Audria nod, almost frantically. I see that she still doesn't react to pressure well...

As he looked at Audria suspiciously, I resisted the urge to jump in and blurt something out to distract him. "Why are you taking Ancient History? You're in my Geography class with Henry." I saw out of the corner of my eye as Audria started to breathe unevenly.

Doppeltes nicht gut (*N: English translation is "Double not good")

"Um... I-I need t-two... Uh... Social Studies credits... In order to... Erm... Graduate fro-from here." She muttered, so softly I could barely head her. Me, the guy who could hear the beat of a butterfly's wings; ten feet away; during a blizzard; in Siberia.

"Ah yes, I understand. Well... Carry on." He nodded curtly, starting to walk away. Then he stopped, as though he remembered something important.

"Oh, and Miss. Andromeda?" My head snapped up, looking at him and Audria confused; she had a panicked expression on her face. That was weird... Why did he call her Andromeda? Audria's real full name was just Audria. Why would he think that it was Andromeda... He must've been very confused.

"Yes sir?" She whispered softly.

"That's a beautiful necklace, where in the world did you get it?"

"My... Parents," Audria stuttered nervously. He nodded thoughtfully, his olive-black eyes darting here and there rapidly. He was stressed; I saw his hand rest on Audria's coffee had bought her earlier today as he talked with her.

"I see..." walking away, he began to mumble and mutter to himself. Both Audria and I listened for the sharp sound of his shoes clacking on the polished floor to disappear down the hallway, an eerie silence following in their wake. That man was idiosyncratic; odd.

"I see you still melt under pressure." I joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"No, he just scared me is all!" She retorted tartly, continuing her skimming of the exhibit description in front of her, sipping her coffee.

"And you pride and stubborn issues have remained the same too." She squinted at me, her face marred with a deep frown. Then she huffily turned away. I instantly regretted my words.

"Hey, Audio. I'm sorry; I just missed teasing you..." She just nodded, I looked over to see a tear slide down her cheek and splatter onto the plastic. I frowned, but knew from experience that when Audio was crying, you leave her alone or she'll bite your head off.

**"Audio!" I yelled, licking honey off my fingers. I had recently found a stash of honey in a nearby nest, and I wanted to show her. Loud sniffles came from nearby, so I followed the noise.**

**"Hey Audio!" I yelled louder.**

**"What!" An annoyed voice snapped at me. I saw her, her face red and tear streaked. Her breaths were jagged and uneven, her arms crossed over her body protectively.**

**"What's wrong?" I asked. She just looked away.**

**"Nothing that concerns you." She said hotly, I frowned. I didn't like the way she was talking.**

**"Yeah, something is wrong. You should tell me, and we'll go and fix it..." I started, waiting for her to snap out of this attitude and go back to my best friend.**

**"No," She answered shortly. I walked over.**

**"Hey, I just heard that Austin got a new—" At this she spun around, her face flushed with anger and her eyes burning.**

**"No! I don't want to go see whatever Austin has Henry! Can't you take a hint? I want to be left alone!" She screamed angrily, pushing my hand away and stomping into the forest.**

**"Jeez, I guess dad wasn't kidding when he said girls have an attitude problem..." I muttered, kicking a loose stone away.**

I bet she forgot that day... there have been so many things that have—respectively—happened to us over the years that I bet she forgot all those little moments from our childhood that caused me to fall madly in love with her.

"Henry!" I heard her yell excitedly, I jogged over.

"What did you find?" She turned to me, any trace of sadness or anger gone, replaced with excitement and pure giddy delight. I love the way she looks when her eyes light up like that, a thousand sparkling lights glowing in their deep depths...

"I don't know, but that necklace looks familiar!" She smiled; I looked down at the picture she was excitedly pointing at. I looked over her shoulder, my head resting next to hers.

I had seen the necklace before.

Actually, it was around Audria's neck.

The relief depicted a scene where Zeus, king of the Greek gods, was presenting a breathtakingly gorgeous necklace to his daughter, Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty; it just so happened to that the one being presented to the beautiful and vain goddess was what seemed to be an exact match with the one around Audria's neck.

"What? No way! How is that even possible?" Audria blushed and looked away, eyes wandering around so as to not meet mine. I grabbed her shoulders and turned her around, forcing her to face me head on. Her eyes were cast downward, as if laden with unbidden secrets.

"Where did your parents get that necklace?" I asked softly, a hint of urgency in my voice. Her eyes were still looking at my shoes, so I lifted her chin.

Her lips parted. Oh, man. I resisted the sudden urge to kiss her, to murmur sweet things in her ear, hold her close and never let her go.

I didn't though. she had already rejected me once; I don't think my heart could take it if she did so again.

"They found it at a dig they were working at... I think." She muttered. I looked at her, her blue-green eyes darting back and forth frantically, sparkling and shimmering like the ocean.

"Here on the board it says necklace was jinxed when Athena cursed Aphrodite. It is said to render the wearer unlucky," I said, trying to veer her off the subject; getting her mind off it, just how my sensei taught me while in Japan. Audria bit her lip and nodded thoughtfully, stroking "Aphrodite's" necklace carefully.

Suddenly, her entire face changed, a smile erupting over her features.

"Yeah right! If I believed in curses, I would be dead several times over." She laughed, patting my cheek softly. "I'm pretty good at fending off any curse, legend, or voodoo thrown at me," she smiled, "but thanks for being worried about me." Reaching behind her, she picked up her coffee, and took a sip. As she sipped it, she grimaced, before quickly setting the coffee down and returning her focus to me.

I laughed, my tone easy and carefree. "Hey, that's what friends are for, aren't they?" I asked, reaching to the back of her neck. I gently pulled the necklace over her head. She closed her eyes and took a relieved breath.

"That thing was heavier than I thought," She chuckled, holding her head delicately, her hand searching behind her for something solid. She was swaying slightly, her skin turning a light tinge of green.

"Henry... I'm not feeling so good..." She muttered, her knees beginning to buckle. I skillfully stuck the necklace in my pocket and grabbed her around the waist, catching her before she fell.

I scooped her up and laid her down on the bench adjacent to the exhibit, desperately trying to figure out what was ailing her. "Audria? What did you eat this morning?" I asked. She remained silent, her eyes closed.

"Audria? Audria! Answer me!" I yelled, frantically shaking her by the shoulders. Still she remained silent and unmoving. Panic began to form in the pit of my stomach, clinging on to the hope that this was all a trick she wanted to play to get back at me. Then, again, a voice in the back of my mind whispered, Audria would never do something like this. Ever. "Please, if you're playing some game, stop. Please," I whispered, wiping away the small beads of sweat forming on her forehead, her body starting to shake violently.

One thing became painfully clear:

She wasn't faking.

_A/N: You like the new point of view? Review and tell me! Okay, so, sorry about the wait. I'm on vacation and there is limited wifi connection. Like... little to none, if you're lucky. So I tried to get this to you ASAP, and this is ASAP. So... please enjoy it, and PLEASE review! Okay, thanks!_

_On a more serious note, here is something InkShaper gave me to post on this chapter, and I believe in it. Read it or don't, but try and pass it on._

_"As many of you may know, there have been a lot of reports on the news lately about teenagers who have killed themselves because they were being bullied and felt that it just wasn't worth living anymore. Bullying is a horrible crime against humanity and is a problem that we need to face and confront head-on. Just one suicide caused by bullying is one too many. For all of you out there who are reading this, i have a small favor to ask of you. This wednesday (October 20th) is Wear Purple to Prevent Bullying Day. Whether you just wear a purple hair ribbon or a purple shirt is up to you; also, talk to your friends and family, and tell at least two people about Purple Wednesday. Just think: if you tell just two people about Purple Wednesday and get them to commit to it, and they each tell two people and get them to commit, and they each tell two people about it and get them to commit, then just imagine how many people will be involved in this. Please, just try to wear a little bit of purple and talk to people about it-that's all i ask. Who knows, maybe because you showing your support, you may just show a kid being bullied how much you care and keep them from suicide."_

_Alright, some old person is staring at me rudely, I think I need to get off the computer._

_As always, reviews are REALLY appreciated._

_~Ella_


	7. With a Flick of the Lock

Chapter 6:

Audria's POV

When I woke up, the whispers erupted—again. I groaned and rolled over; I was sore, I felt beat, and I just wanted to get some shuteye!

"Audria?" I heard a voice call out. I slowly pulled my eyes open, and once my eyes focused, I found myself in a soothing lavender room. One that I wasn't familiar with, I opened my eyes further, quickly scanning the room. I was in the nurse's office... why?

"5 more minutes sensei," I mumbled incoherently, closing my eyes again tiredly. Henry just laughed and moved my hair out of my face, his fingers lingering on my cheek sweetly. I felt the spot under his fingers warm with my blush, his hands were so soft and warm...

"Come on Audria, I need you to wake up so Maggie can take you home." I lazily opened my eyes, sitting up slowly. I tried to ignore the prickles of pain I felt whenever I moved, but Lord was that simple task was harder than it had ever been before.

"What?" I mumbled sleepily, my thoughts still muddled with sleep. Suddenly, the memories all came rushing back;

Hard.

The bitter, yet oddly familiar taste, the necklace, Mr. Anchevony: all of it. I curled up into a ball and moaned. Why me? What had I done wrong?

Oh yeah... there was the fact that I was hiding my parents death and living on my own even though I was only sixteen and was illegally trying to raise an insane two year old girl who still had nightmares about her parents death; all while waiting for my best friend's parents to become our legal guardians where we would live traveling around the world still wondering who murdered my innocent parents so brutally.

There was that small detail.

"What's wrong?" Henry asked urgently, putting a hand tenderly on my forehead, checking for fever.

"Just—just a headache." I hissed, uncurling myself slowly and deliberately. "Now why is Maggie taking me home?"

"She's the only one who could drive you home; Jasper has band practice and I have work. Is that alright with you?" I nodded silently in response, swinging my legs around, attempting to stand up, only to feel sick to my stomach.

"Careful there," He laughed, grabbing me around the waist before I fell flat on my face. Why did Henry have to be so... so... so stinking perfect?

"I got it," I responded weakly. Even though I did not want to worry Henry any more, I took his silent offer with as much grace as I could muster, and wrapped my arms around his neck. In response, he scooped me up, holding me against him. Even though his argil shirt was somewhat ugly, it was soft and it smelled nice, like chamomile sawdust, and tree sap—as strange as that may seem.

"Audria, do you feel okay?" He whispered. I looked at him.

"I was just drugged, Henry. Of course I'm not okay!" I hoarsely yelled, he just chuckled, carrying me out of the nurse's office and into the Junior parking lot. Maggie was waiting by her dad's old car (still undecided on what HER car would be) ready to take care of me for the remainder of this so-far pitiful day.

In the back of the car was Elaine, I realized slightly shocked, strapped into a car-seat that I had never seen before. Henry became aware of her oh-so demanding presence as an army of Goldfish crackers pelted his unprotected face. Giggles erupted from her little mouth and we all smiled, even Henry, though he had Goldfish in his hair and face.

"Good Goldfish, where'd you get um?" He asked as his mouth moved up and down, chewing the snack food.

"Wal-Mart, you should go there sometime, it's a life changing experience." I answered honestly as he slid me into the car. "And you didn't have to carry me, I could have walked..." I weakly protested, he just snorted and tickled Elaine, who was simply shrieking she was so happy; then deciding to throw more Goldfish at his head. He just laughed and stole some from her bag, popping them into his mouth.

We both smiled when she kissed him goodbye on the cheek, but I blushed when HE kissed ME goodbye. He stood there, waving as we drove onto the highway.

"It's already the end of the day?" I whispered in disbelief, as a steady stream of high schooler filled cars followed us out of the student parking lot. I must have been heavily drugged or something. Oh, that's right, I was.

"Yeah, that must've been some powerful drug, you were knocked out for at least 8 hours, and you're still a little groggy. Have you ever heard of something like that?" Maggie asked, looking back at Elaine who was blowing bubbles with her own saliva innocently.

I shrugged, but a memory was stirring in my brain.

**I screamed again as the lightning cracked, curling into an even tighter ball and feeling another torrent of tears stream down my face. I sobbed and clutched my rag doll like my little life depended on it. When the next crack came I screamed louder, cowering into the leafs of the bush I was hiding in**

** "Audria! Audria! Where are you?" Someone yelled, another strike of light filled the sky and I screamed in response, the tears falling harder down my face. I didn't care that I was soaked to the bone by rain, or that I was lost in a rainforest. All that even crossed my mind was pure fear of the storm. **

** "Audria!" The person yelled, running over to my hiding spot. It was Henry. "Audria, have you been here this entire time?" I just nodded numbly, letting myself be wrapped in his five year old arms. His birthday had been last week, so he was officially five while I was still only four. **

** "Audio, people have been looking for you everywhere, your parents are worried sick!" He scolded, still wrapping me in a hug. I could only nod numbly, clutching my doll. I had wandered away from the camp about an hour ago, only to get lost when the storm struck. I sobbed and hid myself in Henry when the thunder boomed from above.**

** In response, Henry reached into his backpack and pulled out a thermos. "Here, drink this. It'll make the storm go away," And I raised the bottle to my lips, completely trusting my best friend—**

"AUDRIA!" I was snapped away from the memory, only to find out we had pulled into the house. The memory was lost as I attempted to not only get out of the back of the car but also carry all my school supplies with me. Why do teachers in this country have to assign such heavy books?

"You okay, Audria?" I shook my head, slinging my backpack onto my shoulder.

"Something about me and Henry, something he used to give me during storms..." I muttered, rubbing my head.

"Hey, don't strain yourself. Would you like for me to stay with you, or are you okay?" I waved Maggie off, ushering her to the driver side door.

"Go, go to your 'study' date with Jasper," A deep blush erupted over her features, she looked down at her shoes guiltily.

"How'd you know?" I shrugged, rubbing my head, trying to erase the splitting headache that I was attempting to suffer through.

"I don't know, I guess since neither Henry or I have seen you guys, despite the fact that Jasper lives with Henry, and I have almost every class with you. Thus, the explanation is that you two are going out behind our backs. Besides, just because I grew up in a jungle most my life, I AM a girl—I do have a girl's intuition, and Maggie, you definitely have the hots for old Jasper! When were you going to tell us?" I asked with a sly grin on my face.

"Don't tell Henry, we're waiting for the right time..." I just smiled and picked up Elaine, my face greeted with a torrent of Cheerios. Where do all these snack foods come from?

"Really Maggie? Goldfish AND cheerio's?" She just smiled.

"It was either that or raw bacon,"

"Well at least with the bacon we'd have a decent idea of when she was throwing it." I muttered, picking up he diaper bag.

"Hey, shouldn't you be potty-training Elaine? I mean—"

"Maggie," I interrupted, "Elaine's already potty-trained. She's been potty trained since she was one."

"Then why do you carry around a diaper bag?" I grinned and zipped it open, showing her the contents.

A bag of broken crayons, 3 coloring books with half the pages torn out of each, a rag-doll that was missing an eye, and a small black booklet bound together with rubber-bands, bits of string and ribbon, and to top it off, a strange array of stickers on the makeshift cover.

"It's our little bits and pieces bag, we throw whatever we want in it. Usually stuff to keep Elaine occupied," I said absent-mindedly, balancing her on my hip skillfully, trudging towards the door to my house.

Maggie opened the door for me and bid me farewell, running excitedly back to her car, leaving me with a migraine, an empty house, tire tracks on my driveway, and a two-year old would scare even a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

I set Elaine down on the couch, after locking the front door, and flipped on the TV to Playhouse Disney. Watching her for a moment as she laughed as the characters ran across the screen. I smiled and kissed her forehead, my stomach growling.

As I walked towards the fridge, the world started to spin and colors began to swirl around me. I gripped the counter, my head reeling. My knees gave out and my head hit the granite counter, I could feel the impact, but I wasn't able to register the pain.

That's when I heard the door open, though I was sure I had locked it...

Through the black haze, I tried to stand up; I had to get to Elaine! "Elaine!" I yelled, supporting myself by a chair. That's when a dark figure leaned in the doorway.

"Sorry sweetie," That's when the room rang and something hit me in the arm with enough force to push me backward.

Then the world went black.

And I was still screaming Elaine's name.

_A/N: Hello, this is Ella. Finally. I just want to formally appologize to all of you, after UH stopped putting up new episodes... well... I think we all kinda lost our spark. But after watching some episodes, and finding this chapter on my iPod, I managed to get that back, and continue with my original plans of making this a trilogy._

_And I would also like to make it known that UH will have no season 2. The reruns of the season 1 episodes are supposed to be playing on Tuesdays before Tower Prep, but because of the cancelation, I have no idea if this is still going to be continued. There are a few petitions going around the internet, and I STRONGLY encourage signing these ASAP. UH is a wonderful show and I have lost a lot of respect to Cartoon Network for canceling it after it had so much popularity after the season finale._

_Special thanks to InkShaper, my WONDERFUL beta!_

_And join the cause: _

_http: / / www. facebook. com / pages / DVD-Release-of-Unnatural-History-Season-One /183490668333917 # ! / pages / DVD-Release-of-Unnatural-History-Season-One / 183490668333917_

_(without spaces). Like it. It will make a difference. Even if you don't have a Facebook, set one up and like this page._

_Well, please review and let it be known that I am back on schedu__le towards updating around once every week. And I do want to apologize for the shortness and seemingly rushed feel of this chapter, the climax is finally here!_

_Reviews are always appreciated_

_~Ella_


	8. Morphine, Who Need's It?

I dipped in and out of consciousness. Sometimes, when I opened my eyes, all I could see were the faces of Maggie, Henry, and Jasper. Other times, I wondered if I was actually dead. I also often saw my parents, their faces smiling down at me, and friends I had lost contact with long ago.

When I was awake, for these short periods, the pain was unbearable. I wanted to scream and cry, but couldn't find the muscles or strength to do it.

I picked up small bits of conversations; whether or not they were real, I had no clue.

_ "Will she be okay?" _

_ "I don't know, she took serious injuries to the head and a bullet in her arm. She lost so much blood before you came, dear. And the fact that she was poisoned doesn't help the fact—"_

** "Audio, Audio please wake up, I- I- I can't lose you again,"**

"Jasper, why won't she wake up?"

_ "I don't know, Maggie. I want her to just as much as you."_

** "I love you, Audria, please, please wake up. I need you!"**

_ "Does anyone know how to reach her parents? Anyone?"_

"Do they even exist? No one can locate them, it's as though they disappeared off the face of the earth!"

_ "We can't operate without their consent,"_

"We have no choice,"

_ "I'll sign."_

**"Audio, please wake up! I need you!"**

When I woke up, (for what I hoped was for good) I was alone in a badly decorated hospital room (it had kittens and planes decorating the walls—who does that?). The window's shades were closed, though it looked like it was light outside.

There were too many wires poking out of me, and my arm was bandaged to the point of immobility. I had more thick bandages wrapped around my forehead, an oxygen mask covering both my nose and mouth. My limbs felt heavy but the pain was almost completely faded away—thank god—though I couldn't figure out why.

Morphine, I eventually concluded after a moment of thinking. I attempted to sit up in the slightly awkward hospital gown (who thinks of these things?). My heart monitor beeped loudly as I tore off the mask. I managed to pull out some of the needles before two nurses rushed in, trying to push me back down into bed.

"Please, lay back down! You're not strong enough yet!" One of them pleaded.

"Elaine," I muttered, fighting against the hands, "I have to get to Elaine; she needs me…"

"Please, Audria. We're going to have to ask you to lie. Back. Down!" The other woman insisted forcefully, pushing me back down against my strength.

"Let go of me!" I yelled, trying to fight them off. "I have to find my baby sister! I have to see if she's okay!" I screamed, pushing them off. They tumbled to the ground and I ran for the door, leaning against the frame for a moment and then continuing down the hall.

I stumbled before running into someone. "Audria? What are you doing up?"

I looked up to see Jasper. I tried to move past him, but the bloody kid simply blocked my way. (I think the morphine is definitely affecting my head—I sound like I'm from Harry Potter!). "Move Jasper, I have to see Elaine! I need to know if she's okay!"

"The only place you're going to is back in bed, Audria! Henry would kill me if he found out you were hurting yourself even more." Jasper answered, easily picking me up and holding tightly onto my still-weak frame. "Wow, you're really light," he muttered as he walked back towards my room. I struggled against him but found that I was too tired.

'Damn, I'm too weak.' I groaned inwardly as Jasper fought off the grateful nurses.

"I hate you, Jasper."

"Yeah, I figured as much."

I simply scoffed.

"Hold on, just let me get her to the bed," He grunted, annoyed at how the two ditzy nurses flitted around us. I leaned my head against the band nerd's chest and closed my eyes.

So tired...

Tears prickled at my eyes when the nurse's injected my needles back into my arm after Jasper had tucked me into bed.

"You know, Audria, you're more trouble than Henry was when he first came to the modern world. But I do have to say, you've made Henry a lot happier than he was before," Jasper sighed. I peeked open one of my eyes to try to encourage him to go on. He just laughed, lost in a memory, "though he brought home the occasional FBI agent, he never managed to get shot AND get a concussion on the same day."

I managed a weak smile, "We joke around now that when we separated, we took each other's personalities. I became the troublemaker and Henry... I don't know what's gone on in Henry's life for the past few years; but he's matured a lot—something I don't think anyone expected." I whispered. I suddenly realized that the nurses had injected more morphine into my IV. What were they trying to do, kill me? I reached out my needle-covered hand and Jasper held it.

"Jasper?" I whispered tiredly, my eyes already drooping.

"Yeah?"

"If you hurt Maggie at all, just remember I have four pseudo-black-belts, I've studied with the monks, and I have an official license to kill in 10 countries."

"Only ten?" He joked, now looking a bit worried over in his plastic seat.

"Unofficially in twenty-one," I murmured, snuggling against my pillow. (I was imagining it to be Henry)

"Was that a threat?" I just smiled.

"Nah, I'm just looking out for two of my best friends." By now the poor boy was sweating.

"Two?"

"Do you think Maggie would get her revenge anyway? You might as well have me do it, I can do it officially." I said, still holding his hand.

He was silent for a moment. I'm sure he was trying to keep himself from freaking out. Good, I scared him—now he'll make sure to treat Maggie right. "Hey, I'm going to step out for a sec so I can call Henry and Maggie. Is that okay?" Jasper said after a moment, I looked at him, tears beginning to fill my eyes.

"Please, please Jasper, please don't leave m—"

That is when the morphine decided to kick in. Fading out, I lost the world to black once more.

When I woke up, someone was holding my hand. It seemed they were snoring. I smiled and kept my eyes closed, truly happy for the first time in months that I had such good friends. I slowly drifted of into sleep, the culprit yet again being the stupid morphine.

When I woke up again, three figures were standing over my bed.

"Maggie?" I croaked. I was still on morphine. The smallest of the figures spun around; her face broke into a huge smile as she tried to figure out a way to hug me gently. After an awkward moment, she simply settled for carefully patting my arm where there were no needles.

"Audria! Thank goodness you're finally awake, we were all getting worried. However, Henry—Henry managed to...convince them to lower your morphine intake." She smiled, and I got the feeling he did more than just "talking" to convince the nurses. Oh well, that's Henry for you. "Oh, mom, dad, this is Audria, the girl that I was telling you about."

"Hello," I whispered, trying to sit up, only to be pushed back down by various people. What is up with all the violent pushing? Yeesh. "It's nice to meet you."

The woman smiled and stepped forward, her rather large heels clicking loudly on the linoleum floor. "Hello, I'm Agent Laura. I'm also Maggie's mother. I've been sent to ask you a few questions," I looked at her for a moment. Yep, I could definitely see the resemblance between mother and daughter. Maggie had her hair and stature, but that's about as far as the resemblance went. This woman was cold and clinical, almost emotionless; nothing like the Maggie whom I know and love.

"Oh? And why is that Agent Laura?" I answered coolly, wincing as a nurse injected something ELSE in my arm.

"Well you see, Miss. Audria, your younger sister—Elaine is it?—was kidnapped about three days ago, and the note left demanded a necklace in return; do you know why they would say that?" A sob caught in my throat; Elaine was gone? Someone had drugged me, broke into my home, kidnapped my little sister, all for a stupid necklace? None the less, I took a deep breath, cleared my mind, and focused on finding my happy place, just as Dojo taught me.

"My- my parents once talked about a necklace," I muttered, refusing to look Maggie in the face. Her hand squeezed my shoulder warningly. "But I have no idea what happened to it, I'm sorry."

Maggie's mother nodded and jotted a few things down on a sheet of paper. "And, where are your parents now? We couldn't locate them anywhere, forcing Jasper's father to sign the papers necessary for your surgery. Can you tell us where they could be located?"

I sighed, and racked my brain for some excuse. "We were all coming to America for a few weeks, just for some vacation time. My parents decided to go ahead and enroll us in school here, because...well...we were planning to stay here for a while. when we were boarding the plane, my parents got an urgent message that said they were still needed in Africa. They told me to go ahead and said they'd be back no later than a month."

"They trusted you, their sixteen year-old daughter, to live alone with a child, albeit your younger sister, in a different country?"

"Of course, don't you trust Maggie wholeheartedly?"

"Yes, of course; she's done nothing to prove to us otherwise."

"Exactly. My parents trust me the same; the only difference between my situation and Maggie's, is that while she earned hers through good behavior and not 'toe-ing the line,' so to speak, I earned mine by fending for myself for almost four months. My parents had accidentally left me in Chile and at fourteen I learned to live without them and survive virtually unscathed. They tend to trust me a bit more than the average parent."

"I see; your parents should be returning in about a month. If so, then why do you have two plane tickets to Greece for a flight leaving in about a week?"

"They were supposed to meet us here, but plans changed and we now need to meet up in Greece."

"Oh, I see." She smiled coldly, and I decided, that although I love Maggie like a sister, I was a tad bit scared of her mom. I just smiled and returned the glare

"Hello, Audria, it's nice to see you again." I smiled and shook her father's hand.

"I'm assuming you also have some questions for me?" He smiled and nodded.

"Just one thought; was the door locked when the incident occurred or was it open?" I nodded urgently.

"Yes sir, I learned a while ago you always lock the door behind you..." He smiled warmly and wrote something down.

"Thank you, Audria. We better be heading out now, I hope to see you soon." He smiled and patted the same spot as his daughter had and began to head out of the room with his wife.

"Before you leave, I just have one question for the two of you," I quickly asked, just before Maggie's parents left. The two adults turned around to look at me.

"Yes?"

"Where is my baby sister?" I asked, my voice cracking as I gripped tightly to the metal bed, my knuckles turning white from the exertion. Agent Laura looked at me coldly for a moment when an almost sympathetic smile graced her face.

"We're thinking with your parents, Audria, unless we can find the necklace they're talking about. I'm sorry," And her heels clicked down the hall.

I turned to Maggie, looking for some reassurance. She just turned her head away, her dark hair a curtain between us.

"How could she say something like that to me? Has she no faith, the cold evil bitchy viper she is?"

"Hey! That's my mom you're talking about!" her head whipped around to face me with an angry look.

"Maggie, she's talking about my sister like she's some trivial object that if she doesn't get, then oh well. That's my BABY sister! The one I am supposed to love and take care of and protect! The only thing, the one singular thing, my parents wanted me to do if something happened to them was to take care of Elaine. I lost her Maggie; I lost her! Someone took her and I'm not doing anything, anything, to help change that! Instead I'm stuck in this damn hospital bed waiting, hoping that someone will find her, hoping that someone will bring her to me when in reality, there's a greater chance that I'll never be able to see her again! You have no idea what that's like, Maggie, and you never will! She's gone, and it is all my fault. The only people that are looking to find her are under your mother, and she doesn't even care! To her, Elaine is as good as dead! Lot of help SHE is!"

Maggie was speechless, either because she was too angry to say anything or because she was too shocked at my outburst that she couldn't even form a proper sentence.

For the first time in weeks, I simply broke down, the tears slowly trickling out of the corners of my eyes. I wanted Henry to console me, to comfort me, but he was nowhere to be found. Even more I wanted my mom and dad to be here and tell me it was going to be alright. I wanted Elaine to be I my arms, giggling as my parents tickled her while I smiled at how happy everyone was and how good everything seemed. I knew, though, that that would never happen again. They were all gone, and I couldn't do anything about it.

I began to press the little button that increased my morphine intake. I was tired with reality and wanted to go off into a place much happier than the one I was living in. For the first time since I woke up in the hospital, I was glad when the morphine began to take over my system. I curled up as best as I could, and let the blackness that was once so harsh fold over me, becoming a welcoming release from all the pain. I wasn't even sure if I wanted to wake back up.

_A/N: WHOA! That chapter just flowed right out, I'm pretty proud of it too! Anyway, hope you guys liked it, mild cursing for once, but nothing to graphic. Defintly some HenryxAudria fluff in there if you look hard enough, other than that, some pretty good lying in there on Audria's part. Next chapter is going to be from Henry's POV, so a head's up there; and that's really about it. And Merry Christmas!_

_Reviews are ALWAYS appreciated, especially around the holidays :)_

_~Ella_

_P.S. A super duper thanks to my beta, who basically created that entire last section! THANK YOU! I owe you big time!_


	9. Panic

"I can't believe you're making me take over Macaroni and Cheese, Jasper. Audria is allergic to pasta," I said, my hands resting on a green tupperware full of food. The small smart-car came to a screeching halt.

"What? Why didn't you bother to tell me this BEFORE Maggie made it?" I looked over at my cousin thoughtfully.

"Well, it's either pasta or paprika; I'm not sure," Jasper scoffed and started driving again.

"Henry, I swear," And Jasper's voice became an incoherent mumbling with, but from what I could hear, it was some very colorful language.

"Hey Henry?" Jasper asked suddenly, turning down the radio; Ke$ha, I think was playing (I'm still not totally up-to-date with "modern teenage music").

"Yeah?"

"Do you like Audria?" My body froze. _Had my secret been blown, or was it just that obvious? ... Did she know? Oh God, if Audria knew... What if she didn't love me back?_

"Henry, I'm your cousin. You can tell me," I looked at my cousin; my roommate; my best friend; my brother. If I couldn't tell him, whom could I tell?

I took a deep breath. "We grew up together, Jasper; how could I not have feelings for her? I remember when she used to try and run on water with me in Australia, when we both got lost in Indonesia for four days, when she choked down the local food with me, among so many wonderful memories and adventures we shared. I remember when she was a skinny, little, knobby kneed girl who wanted to do nothing but try new things but always ended up saving my butt. As far back as I can practically remember, her and I have been caring for each other, in the sense that when one was hurt, the other had the band-aid; if one was bored or sad, the other did all they could to cheer them up. There are very few memories from my childhood days, Jasper, that don't have to do with her, with Audio.

"And when our families separated...we kissed." Jasper smiled at this and chuckled, but I just ignored him and continued. "And after I saw her... I realized, every person I've looked at, every girl I've kissed, every person I've held since then, and even those have been few and far between, I realized...I was looking for her. Whenever I was with other girls for whatever reason, the only thing I could do was compare them to her, what their laugh was like compared to hers, what they liked and disliked, all of it. I never really moved on; I still remember those faint feelings I had for her when we were young, except now that she's in my life again, they're stronger. I still need her just as much as I did when we were nine. How could I not love her, though? She's beautiful, and smart, and loving, and caring, and...perfect, simply perfect." I sighed and hung my head. "But all she probably sees me as is a friend," I glumly, voicing my thoughts and fears. With a knowingsmile, he simply patted my back, reassuring me, and we kept on our drive to Audria's home.

Jasper pulled into the driveway to the colonial style home. It matched Audio perfectly: beautiful and surprising.

Jasper's phone began ringing what I think is Taylor Swift's 'Mine' (like I said, not up-to-date). Jasper looked over at me. "Mags," I nodded and held up the Mac-and-cheese container.

"You answer your cellular device, I'll go sprint this in," Jasper smiled, rolling his eyes, and waved as I walked in the crisp winter air. As I walked up the sidewalk, I noticed something was wrong. There were footprints near the window, and the front door was slightly ajar. I quickened my pace, the Tupperware falling out of my hands as I broke into a sprint inside the house.

The TV was playing some kids show, a coloring book still open on the hardwood floors with crayons thrown haphazardly across the floor. Looking down the hall, I could see into the kitchen; papers were everywhere and the refrigerator door was open.

"Audria? Elaine? Anybody here?" I yelled, walking towards the kitchen, but stumbling on something. I looked down and saw a black, bulky object lying on the floor. I squatted down to get a closer look and almost fell back on my butt onto the ground I was so startled by what it was.

It was a gun.

There was a gun lying beside Elaine's favorite stuffed toy; at that point, I began screaming at jasper, yelling at him to hurry inside as fast as his legs could carry him.

I tore through the house, when I finally stumbled onto where Audria was laying in her own pool of blood. Her forehead was slashed open and pouring out blood; her arm was a bloody gushing mess, bent at a strange position. I took a deep breath and felt for her pulse, but couldn't find one; she wasn't breathing, and it was really starting to scare me.

"Audria!"

I yelled and pressed my lips urgently against hers, performing CPR.

Jasper walked in, yelling for me. "Henry, come on! We're supposed to meet dad at—" He stopped when he saw me, his phone tumbling out of his hands. He rushed over.

"She's not breathing, oh my God Henry, what do we do?" Jasper said, feeling for Audio's pulse. I pressed my lips against hers again, breathing out deeply, attempting to . When we broke apart, I turned to Jasper as I pumped her chest.

"9" -pump-

"1" -pump-

"1" -pump-

"Would be" –pump- "great." –pump-

Jasper nodded and scurried (like only my cousin could) across the floor to grab his phone.

I don't know how much time passed before I felt her take a shuddering breath. I nearly fell over with relief as I began to cut away the sleeve of my shirt, wrapping it around her wounding in an attempt to stop the blood flow.

Her eyes fluttered open for a moment, looking at me blankly.

"Henry?" she whispered, I knelt down beside her, the sound of sirens filling the outside.

"It's going to be okay, you're going to be fine," I whispered, more for myself that her, holding her non-blood covered hand. She smiled and looked at the ceiling.

"Je t'aime, Henry."

"Je t'aime, Audio. Je t'aime," I whispered, but she had already passed out. I felt a gloved hand try to pull me off her; but I ignored it and stayed. No one would move me from my best friend's, from my Audio's side.

Then it hit me.

"Elaine!" I yelled, looking around. Then I saw one of the officers 'bagging and tagging the gun along with one of Elaine's stuffed animal. I choked and looked at Jasper.

"Jasper! Get Maggie and look for Elaine! Look everywhere! Anywhere a little girl her age might hide!" I yelled as I walked out the door with Audria, who was now strapped to a gurney. My cousin nodded and started pushing buttons on his phone.

As I climbed into the ambulance, I looked back at the blue house; four police cars piled into the driveway and out onto the streets. People were now crowding around, held back by the caution tape, their whispers reaching my ears.

I sent them all daggers with my glares as we drove away, my cell phone buzzing in my back pocket.

I opened it and pressed it to my cheeks. "Hello?"

"Henry, other way. Flip the phone around,"

I flipped the phone around, "Hello?" I said again, my hand still wrapped around hers.

"Elaine's not here, Henry. She-she was kidnapped."

Oh Amun, what happened?

_A/N: First off, I just want to say something. I know that it's kinda hard to read stories that the show they've been based on has cancelled, but one review? Please, I write for praise and (polite) criticism. I write to get better. And it helps me write so much more if you readers tell me what you think of my writing- that's mainly why this chapter took forever to get out, and also why it's so short. That and it builds suspense. BUT, please review, it means the world to me._

_Anyway, I just want to thank not only my wonderful beta- InkShaper- whom I anxiously await for to reply to my messages, but also my sole reviewer, treehillgirl1. Thank you._

_Well, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, until next time..._

_Have a wonderful life!_

_And note: reviews are always appreciated._

_~Ella_


	10. The Monster in Me

The room, dark and dusty wasn't anything special. The walls were covered in grime with only one, singular slightly yellowed window. There was a single desk with a chair, a small laptop was humming nearly silently on the old wood desk. There was also a bookshelf, on it, where 5 tattered books and two bottles of vodka sat- the alcohol on the top shelf to keep out of reach of wandering hands.

The room itself was in an old factory, probably an abandoned paper mill. The room was one of the few offices and was currently filled with the sounds of someone gently snoring. Amidst the snoring, the cries and whimpers of a small child echoed throughout the old mill. A tired, younger man sat in the only chair in the room, rubbing his temples vigorously. The man himself was young, early twenties at the most, but the bags under his brown eyes contradicted his age and made him appear to be much, much older.

"So let me get this straight, you can take down three snipers with only a hairdryer, but you cannot control a ** two year old!" An older man yelled, Scotty, the man that his screaming was aimed, at flinched and retreated further back into his worn chair.

"Sorry boss, I've never met a little girl like this. She's like... a Tasmanian Devil or somethin', you know, like from those cartoons...she was pure ca-razy!"

The man looked at the man, his junior by only a few months, for a moment, his eyes flickering towards the now-sleeping toddler on a leaky air mattress. Her thumb was in her mouth and a newly-bought sock monkey in her arms the only true sense of comfort she seemed to have as she wrestled with invisible demons in her dreams.

"Where the hell did the sock monkey come from, Scotty?"

"I went down the road and bought it from Cracker Barrel. But in my defense the kid wouldn't stop screaming her head off- something about Dim-Sum and a chick named Sissy," Scotty stuttered, swiveling around in his chair. His boss groaned and slapped his head.

"First of all, you took her to Cracker Barrel! The FB-_freaking_-I is scouring the COUNTRY for her, and you risked our entire operation to just shut her up? And secondly the person's name isn't Sissy- she's this little girl's older sister!" He yelled, Gibbs-slapping the back of Scotty's head. The brown haired man winced, but said nothing to his advisor, instead staring blankly at dim screen in front of him.

"I left her here, locked up in the room just in case. Doesn't it seem kind of... wrong to you to kidnap a child- just to get some funky piece of jewelry?" He whispered after a moment, looking over his shoulder cautiously from the laptop he had retreated to.

"You want money?"

Scotty didn't reply.

"Of course you do- that's why you came to us. And you have to be willing to do anything in order to be rich, right?"

"Well..." the man paused.

"This is how far we're willing to go." He whispered, his breath making Scotty want to vomit. Vodka.

Outside the grimy little room, the pair could hear someone click-clacking towards them. Stiletto heels clicked on the floor; slow and menacing, like a jungle cat waiting to pounce on its unsuspecting victims; the sound of those heels alone caused both men in the room to freeze for a singular, terrifying moment. The door opened, and there silhouetted in the fluorescent lighting of the hallway, was a woman. Her long black hair fell across her shoulders carefully, the only color in her ensemble was the red scarf wrapped around her neck artistically. The blouse and matching pencil skirt she wore were black at the bottom but became a gradient of black to white as it reached her shoulders. The stiletto heels she had on were black as well with red bottoms-they were the real deal and lethal looking. Completing the look was a pair of black sunglasses and a rather large black hat. After closing the door behind her, she removed her sunglasses and took off her hat, carefully placing them on the table, next to Scotty and his laptop. Her piercing hazel eyes had a tint of emotion to them that was quite hard to decipher. Both men sat wordlessly, staring at the one woman they both feared the most.

"Sorry I'm late, sweeties. I saw the cutest scarf while on my way here, and I just _couldn't _resist. Oh! Is this the little sweetie pie?" The woman said loudly, clanking over to the sleeping girl.

"Yes," Scott replied curtly, his voice trembling slightly.

"She's cute- too bad they're not going to hand over the necklace. I might just take her home for myself," She mused, playing with a lock of Elaine's hair. Bringing out a pair of scissors from her purse, she cut a lock of her hair off. her freakily beautiful face morphing into a look of insanity.

"Send it to them, along with a picture." She ordered, her voice no longer sweet- but now almost icy, a voice that shook the two men to their core. She stood up and brushed off her pencil skirt neatly, flashing the two men a white smile. "Well, I'm off!" She said cheerfully, "Bye boys, don't have too much fun without me!"

And with that, Mrs. Monio left the room in all her glory. Leaving behind two scared-looking men and a sleeping child with a bad haircut.

Scotty looked at the man next to him. "Why are you married to a woman like that? She's a total **."

He just shrugged and brought out an old camera from a desk. Looking up and out of the dusty window, he sighed, the happy memories of his past flashing behind his slightly misty eyes. "She wasn't always like that- Kat used to be the most caring woman. When we first met," he chuckled, his face suddenly weary and tired, "She was a business woman, fresh out of school, and I was an inventor, moonlighting as a librarian in the local bookstore to earn some much needed extra cash. She was looking for an elusive book on ancient societies—her secret hobby—and had been unable to find it. We made a bet; if I could find the book, she had to go on a date with me. I found the book, we went on a date, and from then on, well, that's history. She was a sweet, caring woman, but when her father died and left her a large sum of money, and... she changed."

"Then why is she so money-hungry if she's rich? I mean, you guys are rich, right?"

"It wasn't enough. To her, it's never enough; she'll always want more. The reason I married her...well, it was because I once loved her. Now? I don't even know." He muttered, looking back at Elaine and tossing down a newspaper next to the sleeping girl. "Enough about my marriage—or lack thereof; let's get back to work," the fatigued expression on his face all but canceled out the seemingly cheery smile on his face.

Scotty just looked at his boss and remained silent. Lighting a cigarette and taking a deep breath, he could practically feel his nerves calming by the second by the tobacco. In his heart, he definitely felt guilty about capturing the kid. He knew that no matter what this little girl's sister did, the little kid would still end up dead. He'd known that from the moment he'd shot her sister. To him, the most regrettable part of the night was leaving her, bleeding in a puddle of her own blood, while taking the only family she had left (that he knew of, of course).

He breathed out and sighed. He was a monster. He had thought he'd been willing to do anything when he had joined. When they had come to him and offered him the job, he leapt at it. He _really_ wanted—and needed—the money and was desperate enough to do anything, ANYTHING to get the money. After all he'd gone through, Scotty personally thought he was cold enough, STRONG enough to kill someone and not have afterthoughts. He should have known better—no one with a heart can kill another human being and not see it in his or her nightmares for years to come.

Then why was he feeling so guilty?

Seeing that girl slip and crack her head nearly open trying to reach her little sister touched him. She was stubborn enough to try to protect the girl, even after her coffee had been spiked with poison; she was not going to give up, no matter how weak she was. When she couldn't move and faster to get to him, she just began to scream in some sort of last-attempt to either scare him off or get some help. She kept screaming, though, until he had shot her, she quieted after that.

He'd shot and innocent person.

An innocent, caring, young girl whose bright future lay ahead of her like a Caribbean sunset.

He had killed her. He could feel it. No one could live through that. He was positive. Even if she managed to survive the gunshot wound, having her sister taken away form her would kill a piece of her that she could never get back.

He had taken the only thing she had left-for what? A stupid necklace she probably didn't even know about or understand.

Scotty Newman was a monster, he realized, as he ground the tobacco onto the ground. Tears began prickling at his brown eyes.

He picked up the small child from the air mattress, cradling her in his arms while his boss continued drinking out of a tequila bottle. He gently rocked her back and forth in some sort of gentle attempt to quell the whimpers.

He truly was a monster if he let them kill this innocent little girl.

He truly was.


	11. Of Socked Feet and Brazilian Water Fight

Chapter Ten: Of Socked Feet and Brazilian Water Fights

Dedicated to HarryPotterMangaGleek

Audria was awake, her morphine had been reduced and she was now allowed to legally sit up- no more violent pushing for a while.

But all she did was stare into space.

Her eyes were unseeing, always filled with tears but never quite crying, her lips moving but never speaking. There were no legible words being uttered under her breath as Jasper had attempted to find, or a coded message in her flickering eyes as Maggie had attempted to prove. Audria was simply dead on the inside.

_'I failed. I failed at the one thing my parents always told me to do.' _

**"Audria. Snap out of it," **

"Audria, come on. We need you back,"

_'Why didn't I die? I deserve to die. Why /am/ I alive? What in the world do I have to live for now?'_

"What's wrong with her Maggie?"

**"She's suffering depression and shock, there's no telling how long she'll be like this- weeks, months even. Losing her sister was just to—"**

_'I am so sorry. I deserve to feel like this, like everything I do is wrong. Like everything I touch dies. Like it's all. My. Fault.'_

"Well, where are her parents? Maybe they can help..."

_'Elaine... If only I could tell you I love you one last time...'_

"Henry, you're crazy. You can't _talk_ a person out of depression."

"Watch me, Maggie. Audria needs this,"

"Needs what? Henry, you're not going to hurt her are you?"

"Maggie, trust him, he knows what he's doing."

There was a silence.

"Audria. Audria listen to me, I know losing Elaine has hurt you; it's hurt all of us. We love her just as much as you do, but we're not going to find her by looking at that wall. Audria, your baby sister needs you. She is somewhere on this Earth, crying out for you as we speak, and are you just going to let her die? Because the Audria I know, would fight to the very end."

Audria, after days of sitting, blinked sleepily, as if waking up from a nightmare.

"Henry?"

"Mm?"

"Is Elaine dead?"

There was a pause, a careful consideration of words before the blonde spoke. "She will be for sure if you don't help us look for her,"

Audria nodded, then turned her head. A small, sad smile on her lips as she looked at the collection of friend's she had somehow managed to gather in the past weeks, realizing how lucky she was sometimes.

It took her a moment to find the right words; tears beginning to fall smoothly down her cheeks as she spoke. "I want my baby sister back."

The trio burst into cheers as they hugged the new addition, plans forming in each of their minds on how they could retrieve the fearsome toddler they had come to adore.

insert

Audria took a deep breath and grinned, her hands around Henry's neck as he piggyback rode her up the path to Henry and Jasper's front door, Jasper and Maggie trailing behind them with arms heavy with suitcases (well... There was a duffel bag anyway) and Teddy bears with flowers (apparently Audria had quite a few visitors while she was passed out).

"Okay, so you're sure you'd rather stay with the guys?"

"Yup, they have hammocks and they can protect me if my killers find out the job wasn't done." There was a loud crash from behind the trio as Jasper dropped everything he had been holding.

"K-K-Killers?"

Audria laughed weakly, "I was just kidding, Jasper. Lighten up a bit."

"Lighten up a bit, Jasper,'" Jasper mocked, his voice reaching a squeaky soprano as he attempted to imitate Audria's voice. "Lighten up, she tells me." He muttered, opening the door harshly as the trio waited behind him. "Yeah, I'll lighten up when I'm _dead_!"

Audria and Henry laughed and Maggie sympathetically patted his back as Henry dropped Audria onto the couch, the rest of the teens following in her suit. A collective sigh as they hit the worn furniture in relief.

"Jasper, could you possibly get off my arm? Please?"

"Oh! Yeah, sure, sorry 'bout that..."

Audria winced and flexed her arm; attempting to move the cast a bit, only succeeding in whacking Jasper in the face.

"Ow!"

"Karma!"

There was a silence as the foursome sat, Maggie whispering something to Henry as Audria attempted to wiggle her toes again.

"The doctor said you won't be able to wiggle your toes for another week, the neurological damage you had was pretty extensive. You're lucky you didn't permanently damage anything." Henry commented, watching as the girl's forehead creased in deep concentration.

"Why do you have to be a know-it-all sometimes, Henry?" Audria asked as she stuck out her tongue in partial concentration and partial annoyance, her eyes glued to her feet- on of which was wrapped in a cast because her and Henry had gotten a bit _too_ excited about her then-new ability to get out of bed and had decided to race down the hospital halls with socks on. Ending in a spilled cart, sprained wrist, fractured ankle and a very angry nurse.

At least it would only be on for a few more days.

"Ha! I did it!" Audria shouted with glee, raising her hands but accidentally whacking Jasper in the face again. "Sorry, Jasper!"

"Again? Really?"

Maggie burst out laughing until she realized Jasper's nose was bleeding, quickly rushing him to the bathroom with her purse.

"Huh, who knew that you would actually wiggle your toes, Audio?"

"I did!" Audria giggled, the medication she had been taken was making her a bit loopy...

"I guess you did, didn't you?"

"Uh-huh..."

The two didn't see Jasper and Maggie stick their heads out of the bathroom door, frustrated looks on both of their faces and a tampon sticking out of Jasper's nose.

"Thanks again for letting me stay here," Audria thanked, looking at Henry softly.

"Of course! It'll be just like Brazil,"

Audria laughed and blew her bangs out of her eyes. "Brazil..."

**"Henry, they're not at the camp."**

**"What? They have to be! Your parents couldn't have left us!"**

**"But they're not at the camp!" Audria yelled in frustration; Henry was staying with her family for her seventh birthday, his own parents in Mongolia while he was with them. **

**"Well what do we do now?"**

**"I don't know, gather berries or something..." Audria muttered, kicking a stone around. **

**"Let's build a shelter!"**

**It started out building a shelter, but it quickly escalated into a water fight in the nearby brook. **

**"Stop it Henry!"**

**"You first!"**

**Laughter echoed throughout the trees as Henry splashed Audria. "You're horrible Henry!"**

**The seven year old just laughed and splashed the girl again; Audria shrieked, her small ponytail soaked as well as her t-shirt. **

**They fought playfully until the sky was a dusky orange, the stars beginning to twinkle lazily in the dimmed sun. Audria looked up at the sky with worry as she sat on the riverbank, hugging her knees in thought. **

**"Henry, where do you think they are?" **

**The boy shrugged, taking off his sopping wet shirt and wringing it out. "I have no idea, Audio. But surely they have to be looking for us- we're not that hard to miss." Audria smiled and looked down at the ground, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. **

**"I guess so... But I can't help but feel a bit worried..." Audria trailed off, biting her lip as tears began to fill her eyes. Henry walked over and squatted, wrapping an arm around her comfortingly. **

**"We'll get through this, and I promise I will get you home; so don't worry, we'll be fine!"**

Henry lowered down to her ear level, his cheek touching hers as he whispered softly. "That vow still holds. I will get you home, and everything will be okay. We will find Elaine, I promise." He swiftly kissed her on the temple, leaving her skin warm and tingled spreading throughout Audria's body,

And she was pretty sure it wasn't the meds.

_A/N: So... Don't kill me. Please. I know it has been MONTHS (with, unfortunately, no exaggeration there), this chapter is kinda short- not to mention unbeta'd- and LONG overdue. It's completely my fault, and unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond my control, my writing situation probably won't get much better (besides the updating thing- I'll get faster at that...). I know you're probably sick of my rambling, but I have a few people I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to specially thank for making this chapter possible:_

_First and Foremost- _HarryPotterMangaGleek_. Thank God for people like you. I'm sorry I haven't responded to your PM, but I dedicate this chappie to you for everything you've done :D_

_Secondly- _Diana Silver_ for PMing me and reminding me to actually write something... I'm so sorry I didn't respond to your PM, but it meant the world to me that people actually cared about this story enough to._

_And Lastly- my wonderful beta, _InkShaper_. Don't know quite what got you, whether it be the hurricane or the AP work, but this story would not be nearly as popular if it wasn't for your help. Thanks :)_

_Well, that's about it..._

_Oh Yeah!_

_And thanks to all of you AMAZING reviewers/readers/favoritors/anything else you guys do-ers this story would be nothing without ya ;)_

_As usual, reviews are always appreciated!_

_~Ella_


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